Lok Sabha secretariat bans entry of MPs' personal staff inside Parliament amid COVID

Even as the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha speakers are mulling on options for holding the upcoming Monsoon session amid the Coronavirus pandemic, the entry of the personal staff of MPs inside the Parliament House has been restricted by the Lok Sabha Secretariat on Thursday.

Lok Sabha Secretary General Snehlata Shrivastava said in an order that the presence of over 800 personal assistants (PAs) of members of Parliament (MPs), when the House will be in session, will make the situation vulnerable. "In compliance with the social-distancing norms, it is decided to restrict the entry of PAs of MPs inside Parliament till further orders," the order said. The Lok Sabha Secretariat also restricted the entry of retired officers, personal guests and visitors of officers below the joint-secretary level.

Currently, more than four officers posted at Parliament tested positive for COVID-19.  Two floors of the Parliament Annexe building were sealed and re-opened after the entire complex was sanitised.

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Meeting for Monsoon Session

On June 2, Rajya Sabha Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla held a detailed discussion on holding the ensuing Monsoon session keeping in mind the Coronavirus-induced norm of social distancing. According to sources, the session will begin in July, where the Lok Sabha will be convened in Central Hall while the Rajya Sabha will convene in Lok Sabha Chamber on alternate days. The oath-taking ceremony of the new Rajya Sabha members has also been deferred to a later date.

The meeting was held at Vice President Naidu's resident which was also attended by the Secretaries-General of both the Houses. Sources said that both the presiding officers have underscored the need to adopt technology to enable Parliament sessions as a long term option to tide over situations when regular meetings are not possible. They have noted that since there is no requirement of maintaining the confidentiality of the proceedings of both the Houses, which are open to general public besides being telecast live, virtual Parliament is an option to be explored.

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India's Covid - 19 tally details 

As per update by the Union health ministry, Coronavirus cases in India is at 2,16,919, while the death toll climbed to 6,075 with 260 new fatalities, on Thursday. The health ministry said the number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 1,06,737 while 1,04,106 people have recovered and one patient has migrated. "Thus, around 47.99 per cent patients have recovered so far," a senior official said.

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The highest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases was reported from Maharashtra at 74,860, followed by Tamil Nadu at 25,872, Delhi at 23,645, Gujarat at 18,100 Rajasthan at 9,652, Madhya Pradesh at 8,588 and Uttar Pradesh at 8,729. The number of COVID-19 cases has risen to 6,508 in West Bengal, 4,390 in Bihar and 4,080 in Andhra Pradesh. Karnataka has so far reported 4,063 cases, Telangana 3,020, Haryana 2,954, Jammu and Kashmir 2,857 and Odisha 2,388.

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