Ahead of Parl session Naidu, MPs undergo Covid test

January 28, 2021 17:49

Rajya Sabha chairman M Venkaiah Naidu

The budget session of Parliament begins on Friday with President Ram Nath Kovind addressing members of both the Houses seated in three different locations for the first time.

The President's address begins at 11 am and will be telecast live using a total of 30 cameras of LSTV and RSTV, with nine of them positioned in the Central Hall of Parliament.

Some 144 members of Parliament will be seated in Central Hall including the Council of Ministers, chairpersons of various committees of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, leaders of different parties and groups in both the Houses, former prime ministers and national presidents of the BJP and Congress.

The remaining members of Parliament will be seated in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha chambers as per the Covid induced physical distancing norms.

Rajya Sabha chairman M Venkaiah Naidu has taken a Covid test ahead of the session and so have several members of the Rajya Sabha.

A total of 1,209 officials and staff of the Rajya Sabha secretariat have also been administered the Covid test as part of the preparations for the budget session, which is the second to be held under Covid restrictions after the monsoon session last year.

Some 715 officials and staff of the Rajya Sabha secretariat, who are not directly connected with the proceedings of the House, have been administered antigen tests while 494 associated with the proceedings of the House have been administered RT-PCR tests.

None has tested positive in the antigen tests and results of RT-PCR tests are expected today. This is in sharp contrast to 64 officials and staff of the Rajya Sabha secretariat having tested positive ahead of the monsoon session last year.

Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu reviewed in detail on Wednesday the preparations for the budget session with the secretary general and other officials of the secretariat. He has directed that the personal staff of the ministers, members of Rajya Sabha and officers of the ministries visiting Parliament shall also be tested for Covid.

The Rajya Sabha will meet at 3 pm on Friday and one hour after the presentation of the general budget for 2021-2022 on February 1. On the remaining days, the House will meet between 9 am and 2 pm.

The business advisory committee chaired by Naidu will meet on Friday.

The budget session with 33 sittings assumes importance as the general budget for 2021-2022 is the first to be presented after the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic which caused severe social and economic disruption over the last one year.

The Rajya Sabha will have both zero hour and question hour during the budget session, with question hour beginning at 9.30 am.

Zero hour and question hour were not taken up during the monsoon session last year as the House met for only four hours a day.

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