Parliament Live Updates: Opposition leaders stage a protest in Rajya Sabha during the Winter Session of Parliament, in New Delhi, Thursday, Dec. 2, 2021. (RSTV/PTI Photo) Parliament Highlights: Opposition parties, including the Congress, the TMC and the DMK, demanded from the government in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday that the Dam Safety Bill, 2019 be sent to a parliamentary select committee, saying it needs scrutiny as it is “unconstitutional and encroaches upon the states’ rights”.
The bill seeks to provide for surveillance, inspection, operation and maintenance of specified dams for the prevention of dam failure related disasters and an institutional mechanism to ensure their safe functioning, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. It was passed by the Lok Sabha in 2019.
Earlier today, several Opposition parties staged a walkout in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday over the issue of inflation as well as the suspension of 12 Rajya Sabha Members.
Outside Parliament in New Delhi
Members of opposition TMC and NCP on Thursday sought to know from the government its stand on booster doses for COVID-19, besides usage of money from the PM-CARES funds. Participating in a discussion on the COVID-19 pandemic in Lok Sabha, TMC member Saugata Roy accused the political leadership of 'complacency' in handling of the pandemic.
He said it is because of the 'mistakes' at the top level of the government that the country was caught 'unprepared' in both the waves of COVID-19. 'Till today, I do not know about what happened to other vaccines that have been discovered in the world -- Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson. Whether all these vaccines have come to India and whether they can be used?' he said. (PTI)
In reply to a question about the number of Judges appointed in the Supreme Court and various High Courts in 2021, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said: "In 2021, 09 Judges have been appointed in Supreme Court and 118 Judges have been appointed in various High Courts up to 29.11.2021. Government appoints only those persons as Judges of High Courts who are recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium. The total number of High Court Collegium proposals which are at various stages of consideration between the Government and the Supreme Court Collegium as on 29.11.2021 is 164. The number of proposals which have been remitted/returned by the Government to the High Courts on the advice of the Supreme Court Collegium is 55 during the current year."
Journalists on Thursday held a protest against certain restrictions imposed on the entry of scribes and camera people into Parliament, alleging the move is a precursor to a "complete ban" on spot coverage of parliamentary sessions by the media in the coming days.
They demanded that all restrictions imposed on journalists' entry into Parliament premises and the Press Gallery must "immediately" be lifted, and media persons be allowed to perform their professional duty. Several senior editors, journalists and camera persons working with various media organisations joined the protest. (PTI)
Opposition parties, including the Congress, the TMC and the DMK, demanded from the government in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday that the Dam Safety Bill, 2019 be sent to a parliamentary select committee, saying it needs scrutiny as it is “unconstitutional and encroaches upon the states’ rights”.
The bill seeks to provide for the surveillance, inspection, operation and maintenance of specified dams for the prevention of dam failure related disasters and an institutional mechanism to ensure their safe functioning, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. It was passed by the Lok Sabha in 2019.
Several steps are being taken to help reduce air pollution levels in the country and monitoring stations have been set up in 132 cities, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav informed Rajya Sabha on Thursday. According to PTI, while replying to supplementaries during Question Hour, he said the government has taken steps on changing BS4 norms in vehicles for fuel emissions to BS6 and is evolving schemes in various cities for setting up Metro rails.
"I would, on behalf of TMC, like to humbly appeal to the presiding officers of both Houses to rectify television coverage. All protests are censored on the TV and we demand this censorship to be stopped, Parliament cannot be converted into a closed chamber," TMC MP Derek O’Brien said during a press conference on Thursday.
The Opposition on Thursday hit out at the Modi government over the Covid-19 management, accusing it of favouring BJP-ruled states in the allocation of vaccines and dubbed the celebrations over the 100-crore vaccination mark as premature.
Initiating the debate in the Lok Sabha on the COVID-19 pandemic, Shiv Sena leader Vinayak Raut lamented that Parliament was discussing the issue 21 months after the outbreak of the disease and at a time when cases were on the decline. Referring to the Omicron variant of the virus, Raut demanded close co-ordination among state governments and the Centre.
“There should be clarity in the Centre's directives on Omicron,” the Lok Sabha member from Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg in Maharashtra said.
On vaccination, Raut accused the Centre of allocating vaccine doses to BJP-ruled states in excess and at the cost of non-BJP ruled states. “The prime minister's responsibility is for the entire 130 crore population. It should not be so that you look at Maharashtra with a sly glance, help Gujarat in good measure and make maximum allocations to Uttar Pradesh because it is going to polls. Allocations should be made on the basis of the population,” the Sena leader said. (PTI)
"We will continue with our agitation, but we will also raise the issues concerning the common people in the House": Congress Rajya Sabha MP KC Venugopal.
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Congress, NCP, RJD, TRS and IUML staged a walkout from the Rajya Sabha over the issue of inflation on Thursday.
Addressing the Covid pandemic and concerns around the new Omicron variant in Lok Sabha, Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said that the new variant is a “setback” as the government was working towards slowly increasing the number of flights.
"Our government has categorised 11 countries as 'at risk'," he said.
Rajya Sabha proceedings resumed at 12 pm, amidst continuous sloganeering by the Opposition.
The Rajya Sabha was adjourned till 12 PM amidst sloganeering by the Opposition for the reinstatement of the 12 suspended MPs.
Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu addressed the suspension of the 12 Rajya Sabha members in Parliament today: "Some of the respected leaders and members of this august House, in their wisdom, chose to describe the suspension of 12 members as ‘undemocratic’. I have struggled to understand if there was any justification in that kind of a narrative being propagated but could not."
"While calling this suspension undemocratic both within and outside the House, not even a word is being said about the reasons given for the suspension, the disdainful conduct of some members during the last session, which I have categorically called as ‘acts of sacrilege’ on the last day of last session."
Amidst sloganeering by Opposition leaders, the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill, 2020 was passed in the Lok Sabha on Thursday.
Parliament proceedings have begun in both Houses, amidst protests by the Opposition over the suspension of 12 Rajya Sabha Members
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday joined the Opposition leaders' protest against the suspension of 12 Opposition members of Rajya Sabha in Delhi.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with top ministers on Thursday to discuss the strategy for the ongoing Winter session of Parliament. (ANI)
Funds released under the Poshan Abhiyan Programme, which is aimed at curbing malnutrition in the country, stand severely under-utilised, according to data released by the Women and Child Development (WCD) Ministry on Wednesday.
The data, tabled by WCD Minister Smriti Irani in Rajya Sabha, shows that out of Rs 5,31,279.08 lakh released for Poshan Abhiyan in the country from Central funds, only Rs 2,98,555.92 lakh has been utilised.
The data show that of Rs 26,751.08 lakh released to West Bengal until March 2021, no money has been utilised so far. Similarly, of Rs 56,968.96 lakh released by the Centre to Uttar Pradesh, the state has utilised only Rs 19,219.28 lakh in the same period, according to the data. Read the full report here.