Adequate Measures have been taken to Ensure Safety and Sanitation of Parliament House Complex
RTPCR Will Not Be Mandatory For the Members Who Have Taken At Least One Dose of Vaccine: Om Birla
By Andalib Akhter / New Delhi
Lok Sabha Speaker Mr Om Birla today informed that the Parliament House was fully prepared for smooth functioning of forthcoming Monsoon session. He said that adequate measures had been taken to ensure safety of the Members, Officials, Media and others. Speaker also informed that the New Parliament Building will be completed in time.
The sixth session of the 17th Lok Sabha (Monsoon session) will commence from 19 July 2021.
Interacting with media persons, Lok Sabha Speaker said that the upcoming monsoon session will start from 11 A.M. as per normal timing. The Session will have a total of 19 sittings. He sought support of political parties to ensure smooth functioning of Parliament. He also appealed to the members to actively participate in the discussion and avoid disruption of the house.
Mr Birla said that members who have taken at least one dose of vaccination will not be required to undertake RTPCR test. Facility for RTPCR test will be available in Parliament House Complex.
The Speaker noted that 411 Members have already taken vaccination and the rest of the Members are yet to be vaccinated because of medical grounds. Officials of the Lok Sabha Secretariat have also been vaccinated, said Mr Birla. Vaccination facility will be available in Parliament House Complex.
Speaking on the Business transacted in the 17th LOK sabha, Speaker said that despite Covid, the 17th Lok Sabha has transacted record business during the first five Sessions compared to the previous Lok Sabhas.
“The 17th Lok Sabha has seen the highest number of sittings compared to the 14th, 15th and 16th Lok Sabha, which is reflected in the record productivity of the House” he said.
Mr Birla emphasized that recently, there has been a significant increase in the receipt of replies from the Ministries on matters raised under Rule 377. The 17th Lok Sabha has taken several measures in the direction of strengthening accountability of the Executive, said the Lok Sabha Speaker.
Mr Birla further said that Indian democracy has stood the test of time and the country is moving towards strength and development.
As a step towards further capacity building of the Members, Mr Birla said that the Research Wing of the Lok Sabha has been actively involved in providing relevant information on policy issues and other subjects to Members of Parliament on 24×7 basis. The Speaker also said that in the coming times Parliament Library shall be fully digitized and that all important parliamentary debates, papers, and documents etc from 1854 onwards will be digitally available. Parliament Library and the libraries of the State Assemblies will be brought on one digital platform for common access, said Mr Birla. He further said that for the convenience of Members, the facility of home delivery of books from the library has also been started by the Parliament Library.