Amit Shah chairs meeting of the Southern Zonal Council in Tamil Nadu

Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah chaired the 31st meeting of the Southern Zonal Council in Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu. The meeting was attended by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, Karnataka Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar, Keralam Chief Minister V. D. Satheesan, Puducherry Lieutenant Governor K. Kailashnathan, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Lieutenant Governor Admiral (Retd.) D. K. Joshi Lakshadweep Administrator Praful Patel, and the Deputy Chief Minister of Telangana Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu. Chief Secretaries, Advisors and other senior officers of the state governments, as well as senior officers of the Central Government, also attended the meeting.

Addressing the meeting, Shri Shah said that this region of South India is a very important region for the development of the country. He said that whether it is literature, Research and Development (R&D), space, IT, AI, industrial development or agriculture, South India has always contributed in every sector. South India has played a very major role in all areas of the country’s IT, automobiles, pharmaceuticals and infrastructure development, and that is why a large amount of foreign direct investment has also come to the South.

Shri Shah said that since 2014, efforts have been made to transform the Zonal Council into a meaningful platform. The Zonal Council is essentially a constitutional mechanism that, over a long period, had gradually been reduced to a mere formality. Comparing the periods of 2004-2014 and 2014-2026, he said that while the Council previously held an average of two and a half meetings annually, it now holds six meetings each year. (UPDATED ON 20TH AUGUST 2026)