Preparations for Parliament Monsoon Session underway; 445 MPs inoculated: LS Speaker

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said on Friday that the Monsoon Session of parliament will definitely take place this year and preparations have been made for the same, including the vaccination of Parliament members.

“Secretariat employees have been vaccinated and 445 members have got themselves inoculated separately. The remaining members and employees will soon be vaccinated. We're constantly trying to increase the working & productivity of parliament,” the Speaker told ANI.

Birla informed that a committee of cabinet ministers is deciding the functioning period of the Monsoon Session and that the House should function without any interruption. “Placard and sloganeering need to be minimised. The House is for discussion, debate and argument and we're constitutionally making efforts to make it more powerful,” he said.

As the 100-year-old building is unsafe and not appropriate for several functions of the House, Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha requested the government to make a new parliament building. Acting on our request, the government took up the Central Vista project, said Om Birla.

He added that the iconic building constructed by the British is inadequate in many ways and a new-age green building is being built at a cost of Rs 900 crore. “We have been saving money, in Parliament workings and over Rs 400 crore has been saved so far,” he said.

Legislative business amid pandemic

The Speaker informed that the COVID-19 disruptions have not hampered the productivity of Lok Sabha as it operated at 122% productivity and passed 107 bills during the period. “COVID-19 was a big challenge and MPs have worked and made Parliament more productive. In 114 sittings, 704 hours of debate were conducted,” he said.

Speaking of the new age, Birla said the Parliament has stepped into a digital age, saving 1.25 lakh pages of paper. Compared to the previous 40%, now there are 90% e-notices for questions. “MPs have not been utilising the library for research. It’s one of the biggest libraries in the world and MPs can now get books and materials delivered to their residences,” he added.