Bhubaneswar: Chief Ministers of five States including Odisha are likely to attend the 24th Eastern Zonal Council meeting scheduled to be held on January 31 in Bhubaneswar. As per reports, Chief Ministers of Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, Sikkim and West Bengal will attend the meeting.

Also, Union Home Minister Amit Shah is likely to attend the council meeting though any confirmation on his schedule is yet to be known. If Shah attends the council meeting, this is the first time he will be visiting the State after becoming the Union Home Minister.

The Eastern Zonal Council meeting is going to be held in Odisha after a gap of 29 years.

Measures to be taken against the Left Wing Extremism (LWE) are likely to be discussed during the council meeting. This apart, steps on how to ensure better outreach of banking services in rural areas and execution of Central schemes in the States are on the agenda as well, sources said.

In 2018, the Eastern Zonal Council meeting was held in Kolkata during the month of October.