Review of Parliament Proceedings

Parliament's Budget session started on January 31 with an address by President Droupadi Murmu to a joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. ” ”In her 75-minute address, President Murmu touched on a host of issues and highlighted the measures taken by the government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the past 10 years to boost the country's growth while advancing welfare and social security for the poor. ” ”She said the centuries-old desire to build a Ram temple in Ayodhya has now become reality and also hailed the armed forces for giving a befitting reply to terrorism and expansionism. ” ”In her maiden address in the new Parliament building, the President listed out the economic reforms undertaken by the government that has transformed India from the group of fragile five to the top five economies in the world. ” ”President Murmu said the government's successful hosting of the G-20 summit has strengthened India's global standing and noted that Jammu and Kashmir, and the north-eastern states hosted some international meetings of the grouping for the first time. ” ”She said this is the time for India to script the future for the coming centuries. ” ”She said over the past 10 years, India has witnessed several such tasks being accomplished in the national interest, for which the people of the country were waiting for decades. ” ”She said for centuries, there was an aspiration to construct the Ram Mandir. Today it is a reality. ” ”The President said within five days of the opening of the temple, 13 lakh devotees had visited Ayodhya Dham. She termed the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple on January 22 as an epochal moment ” ”Speaking on the abrogation of Article 370, she said there were doubts regarding it from some sections but those are now history. This Parliament also enacted a strict law against Triple Talaq, she said. ” ”President Murmu touched on issues ranging from insurgency to inflation and said a country can progress at a fast pace only when it defeats the challenges of the past and puts maximum energy into building the future. ” ”She asserted that the armed forces were giving a befitting reply to terrorism and expansionism and India has emerged as a prominent voice against terrorism in the world. ” ”Today the government is building modern infrastructure along the entire border. This work should have been done long ago on a priority basis. Be it terrorism or expansionism, our forces today are giving a befitting response, she said. ” ”The President said the tangible results of the government's efforts to strengthen internal security are visible. ” ”She said there is a sense of security in Jammu and Kashmir today. The earlier deserted look of marketplaces due to strike has been replaced by the hustle and bustle of crowded markets. ” ”The President said there has been significant reduction in the incidents of separatism in the northeast and many organisations have taken steps towards permanent peace. ” ”She said, Naxal affected areas have shrunk and there has been a steep decline in Naxal violence. ” ”President said, the government, believed the grand edifice of a developed India will stand on the four strong pillars of youth power, women power, farmers and the poor. ” ”In her address, the President highlighted the government's achievements over the last five years, including India's moon landing and the country's performance in the Asian Games. ” ”People heard the slogan 'Garibi Hatao' since childhood but today for the first time in our lives, one can see poverty being alleviated on a large scale. According to the NITI Aayog, in the 10-year rule of the government, nearly 25 crore people have come out of poverty, she said. ” ”She also praised the government for defence production crossing the Rs 1 lakh crore-mark and said that 'Make in India' and 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' have become the strengths of the nation's development journey. ” ”The President also lauded the members of the Parliament for the smooth passage of the women's reservation bill. ” ”She also hailed the efforts of the government for keeping inflation under control despite global crises, especially during the Covid pandemic and wars. ” ”Despite such global crises, the government has managed to keep inflation in the country under control, preventing additional burden on our countrymen. ” ”She noted that in the 10 years prior to 2014, the average inflation rate was over 8 per cent but it has been maintained at 5 per cent in the last decade. ” ”The President said her government has taken several measures to assist women such as bank loans and programmes to make credit available to them. ” ”She said, the government has granted permanent commission to women for the first time in the Armed Forces. For the first time, women cadets have been given admission in Sainik Schools and National Defence Academy. ” ”The efforts of the government in the field of economy also received praise from the President as she pointed out how the Indian economy was now moving in the right direction and at the right pace due to several reforms undertaken in the last 10 years. ” ”She said that amidst serious global crises, India emerged as the fastest-growing major economy, consistently maintaining a growth rate of over 7.5 percent for two consecutive quarters. ” ”On Thursday Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the interim budget 2024-25 in the Lok Sabha. ” ”In the Budget she announced 11.11 lakh crore rupees spending on infrastructure and vowed to continue reforms. ” ”Her interim budget for fiscal year beginning April 2024 followed the convention to remain a vote on account with no major policy announcement and no changes in income tax rates for individuals and corporates, as well as import duty, but offered amnesty for disputed income tax demands of the period prior to 2014-15 as a relief to small taxpayers. ” ”In her close to an hour-long Budget speech, she listed the government's achievements across sectors in the last 10 years and announced measures to boost tourism, housing and renewable energy. ” ”There is a renewed focus on agriculture and rural economy to course correct to some extent the skewed outcome of the ongoing economic growth even though there was no increase in the amount transferred to farmers under the PM Kisan scheme. ” ”Giving a sneak preview of what will be the Modi government's priority in the third term, if re-elected, she said economic policies that foster and sustain growth, facilitate inclusive development and contribute to generation of resources to power investments will be adopted towards making India a developed country by 2047. ” ”The next five years will be years of unprecedented development and golden moments to realise the dream of developed India by 2047, she said. ” ”Sitharaman said that guided by the principle of 'reform, perform, and transform', the government will take up next generation reforms, and build consensus with the states and stakeholders for effective implementation. ” ”The interim Budget seeks Parliament's authorisation for spending for four months and the full Budget for the fiscal year starting April will be presented in July by the government. ” ”She announced construction of 2 crore more affordable houses and a scheme for housing for the middle class, formulation of a comprehensive programme for supporting dairy farmers, enhancing aquaculture productivity to 5 tonnes per hectare from existing 3 tonnes per hectare, and formulation of a strategy to achieve self-sufficiency in oil seeds production. ” ”She said, the Union government will also provide Rs 1.3 lakh crore rupees long term loans to states to spend on infrastructure. ” ”It will develop tourist centres and market them at a global scale as also provide viability gap funding for harnessing wind energy potential for an initial capacity of 1 gigawatt. ” ”Stating that every challenge of the pre-2014 era was overcome through economic management and governance, she said the government, in its July Budget, will present a detailed roadmap to make India a developed country. ” ”Among the headline announcements in the Budget are rooftop solar installations at one crore households to deliver up to 300 free units of electricity per month, a corpus of 1 lakh crore rupees for innovation and technology by providing financing at low or nil interest rates, and a new scheme to strengthen deep tech in the defence sector. ” ”While there were no tax proposals, she extended the sunset dates on tax holidays for startups, tax benefits to sovereign wealth funds and aircraft leasing businesses in IFSC. ” ”Other announcements include viability gap funding for offshore wind energy projects, announcements related to clean energy, including setting up of coal gasification and liquefaction capacity of 100 tonnes by 2030, and phased mandatory blending of Compressed BioGas (CBG) in Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) for transport and Piped Natural Gas (PNG). ” ”Sitharaman termed her government's track record on economy management as GDP – Governance, Development and Performance (GDP). ” ”The FDI inflow during 2014-23 was USD 596 billion, twice the inflow during 2005-14. ” ”On Friday the Lok Sabha began a discussion on Friday on the motion of thanks on the President's address. ” ”Initiating the debate, BJP member Heena Gavit said under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the country is witnessing all-round development. ” ”Taking a swipe at the opposition, she dubbed by opposition INDIA bloc as a cricket team with 11 captains not willing to accommodate other players. ” ”INDIA bloc leaders were like 'Big Boss' participants who live under one roof but everyone eyes the trophy of becoming the ” ”Gavit, who represents Nandurbar (Maharashtra) in the Lok Sabha, said people will once again vote for Modi in the upcoming parliamentary elections and his government will present a full-fledged Union Budget in the coming days. ” ”She said, that a woman president addressed the joint sitting of the two Houses on January 31 and the next day a woman finance minister presented an interim Budget. She said now she, a woman MP who represents a tribal area, was moving the motion to thank the president for her address. ” ”The youth of today should not be a job seeker but a job creator and job giver. The government was working on that, she said. ” ”She said, 'Viksit Bharat' is not the philosophy of a party but of the people of India, she added. ” ”Minister of State for Health S P S Baghel said not a single person died of hunger in the country in the last 10 years and accused the Congress of not taking measures to eradicate poverty. ” ”Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi on Friday demanded an apology from Congress leader Sonia Gandhi over her party's Lok Sabha member D K Suresh suggestion for a separate nation comprising southern states by alleging bias in budgetary allocations to South India. ” ”Participating in the debate on the Motion of Thanks on President's address, opposition leaders accused the government of being high on symbolism and low on substance, saying there are many contradictions in the claims made by the government. ” ”Congress leader Karti Chidambaram said the ruling party believes that uniformity is unity but Congress party and Opposition will always fight to preserve the cultural, linguistic, and religious diversity of India. ” ”The Rajya Sabha has taken up discussion on Motion of Thanks on President’s address to joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament. Initiating the discussion, Kavita Patidar of BJP who moved the Motion of Thanks, said, in the last 10 years women of the country have been empowered. She also listed out achievements of the Government saying 25 crore people have come out of poverty. ” ”Participating in the discussion, Vivek Thakur of BJP said, Narendra Modi Government has brought the country from the policy paralysis era. He said, from fragile five, India has entered in the top five economies. Mr Thakur said, India has become the bright spot in the world. He also highlighted several measures taken by the Government for the welfare of countrymen. ” ”On the other hand, Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge criticised the government over the issues of unemployment, violence in Manipur and others. ” ”He said that the President's address does not make any mention of the prices rise of essential commodities. ” ”After the speech by Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, the House took up the Private Members’ Business. A Private Member legislation, namely The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2022 (amendment of article 153 and substitution of articles 155 and 156) was today withdrawn from Rajya Sabha. The motion had been moved by CPI(M) leader Dr. V. Sivadasan seeking change in the present system of appointment of Governors. ” ”Minister of State for Home Ajay Kumar said Governor plays an integral role for the state in a democratic setup. He said framers of the Constitution deliberated at length over how Governors should be appointed. He added that Governors have to rise above party lines and work for the people without any partiality. Mr Kumar stressed that the amendments proposed in the Bill will go against the federal structure of the country. He said the Narendra Modi government does not believe in bringing such amendments which do not stand to benefit the people. Mr Kumar said the government believes in honouring the Constitution and bringing positive changes in the lives of people through Ease of Living. He also stated that the Constitution is the reason why India is hailed worldwide for its democracy. ” ”Replying to the discussion, Dr Sivadasan stressed that the present system of appointment of Governors should be abolished. He said, the President's election has never created any parallel power structure and the election of Governors will also not create parallel power structures. He said, election in itself is not the reason for emergence of a parallel power structure. ” ”During special mentions, members from various political parties also raised issues of public importance. After completing the listed business the House was adjourned for the day.

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Review of Parliament Proceedings