Amit Shah to chair two-day 'Chintan Shivir of Home Ministers'; Mamata to skip the meet

New Delhi, Oct 27: Union Home Minister Amit Shah will preside over two-day 'Chintan Shivir of Home Ministers' of states at Surajkund in Haryana. However, West Bengal Mamata Banerjee, who is also in charge of the Home portfolio, is going to skip the all-important meeting.

The objective of 'Chintan Shivir' is to prepare an action plan for the implementation of 'Vision 2047' and 'Panch Pran' announced in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Independence Day speech, an official statement said. The PM will address the event through video conferencing on October 28.

Development of an ecosystem for cybercrime management, modernisation of police forces, increase in usage of information technology in the criminal justice system, land border management and coastal security and other internal security issues will be discussed at the event, the statement said.

The role of 'Nari Shakti' is important to achieve the goal of 'Developed India by 2047' and special emphasis will be given to the safety of women and creating a safe environment for them. The aim of the conference is also to facilitate national policy making and better planning and coordination in these mentioned areas.

The West Bengal Chief Minister reportedly received an invitation from the Home Ministry last month to attend the meeting. The state government is also not sending the Home Secretary BP Gopalika or Director General of Police Manoj Malviya, an official told PTI.

"This is festival time and there are several functions lined up. 'Bhaiphota' will take place on Thursday and 'Chhat Puja' will take place soon. It will not be possible for the Chief Minister to leave the State. Our Home Secretary and DGP will not be participating in the Chintan Shivir for the same reason as that of the Chief Minister," the official was quoted as saying by the news agency.

In the two-day event, various topics will be discussed in the six sessions. On the first day, issues such as home guards, civil defence, fire protection and enemy property will be discussed.

The next day matters such as cyber security, drug trafficking, women's safety and border management will be discussed, the statement said.