Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge has demanded a probe by Joint Parliamentary Committee on the allegations against the Adani Group and asked if the rise of the industrialist was due to his friendship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The issue was raised during the debate on the 'Motion of Thanks on the President's Address. Leader of the House Piyush Goyal and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman strongly objected to the insinuations against the Prime Minister, who was also present in the House.<br />''<br />''Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar asked Opposition members not to use the platform of Parliament to make "anti-national" statements based on foreign reports. To this, the Opposition members voiced strong objections to questioning their patriotism. Without naming Gautam Adani, who is in the middle of a political storm after the US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research's adverse report triggered a meltdown in the group stocks wiping out billions of dollars in market value, Kharge said the wealth of a close friend of Modi has grown 13 times in two-and-a-half years.<br />''The individual's wealth has gone up from 50 Thousand crore rupees in 2014 to One lakh crore rupees in 2019, Kharge alleged and wondered what miracle happened in two years that wealth of 12 lakh crore rupees has been acquired. Stressing that he does not understand such a "fast development", Kharge asked if it was because of the friendship.<br />''<br />''To this, Chairman Dhankhar intervened and said, the discourse cannot stoop to allegations which are not substantiated or to the use of loose expressions and casting of aspersions without any basis. Leader of the House Piyush Goyal and Sitharaman intervened and said Kharge was making an allegation which cannot be substantiated and about "an association which absolutely has no basis whatsoever. Mr. Dhankhar said the points raised by the treasury benches are valid but asked Kharge to place documents on record with respect to the allegations involving the name of the prime minister".<br />''<br />''When Mr. Kharge remarked that instead of strengthening public sector enterprises, which provide jobs to 10 lakh people, the government was letting public money to the tune of 82,000 crore rupees to be used to support the Adani Group, which employs only 30,000 people, Mr. Dhankhar intervened and said India has a robust mechanism on how people are awarded contracts. Mr. Goyal said, the chair is duty-bound to protect Indians to ensure that the national interest is not compromised.<br />''<br />''Mr. Dhankhar said any comments made in the House should be in the national interest and should be authenticated. It cannot be an allegation without substance, he added. Opposition members then jointly asked the Chairman to point out the anti-national comments that Kharge has made. Mr. Kharge said he was unable to understand why ruling party members were running away from setting up a Joint Parliamentary Committee.<br />''<br />''Taking part in the debate, Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya of CPI-M said the strength of a government lies in its power to face the opposition. If this is an honest government, then it should not be scared of any investigation. Jawhar Sircar of Trinamool Congress highlighted the role of the regulatory authorities in the Adani issue. The way regulatory authorities collapsed in the face of hard facts when Adani Green Energy's share value shot up by 5,500 per cent in two to 2.5 years. No regulator, SEBI looked the other way around" he said.<br />''<br />''Manoj Jha of RJD, N. R. Elango of DMK and Aneel Prasad Hegde of JDU also participated in the discussion.<br />''Earlier in the day members belonging to Opposition parties… Aam Aadmi Party, Shiv Sena Thackeray faction and Bharat Rashtra Samithi staged a walkout from the Rajya Sabha in the morning after their adjournment notices were disallowed by Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar.<br />''<br />''Soon after laying of papers, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said he has received four notices under Rule 267 from K. Keshava Rao, of Bharat Rashtra Samithi, Sanjay Singh Aam Aadmi Party and Sanjay Raut and Priyanka Chaturvedi both of Shiv Sena and disallowed the same. Later, they staged a walkout from the House and later, held a demonstration in front of the Gandhi statue on Parliament premises.<br />''<br />''Mr. Kharge, in his debate also invoked Atal Bihari Vajpayee's 'raj dharma' remark post the 2002 Gujarat riots, sparking a heated exchange with ruling party members in Rajya Sabha who accused him of quoting the former Prime Minister partly to suit their convenience.<br />''<br />''Union Ministers Piyush Goyal and Nirmala Sitharaman opposed Kharge's remarks made during his speech in the Upper House today. Leader of the House and Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal immediately responded to Kharge's remark, saying Vajpayee was agonised with communal riots during the Congress rule, be it in Maharashtra, Bhagalpur or in Gujarat.<br />''<br />''Finance Minister Sitharaman also intervened, saying Vajpayee's quote ended with the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi following Raj Dharma. Opposition members are quoting the former Prime Minister "partly to suit their convenience", she said. Sitharaman's reply led to an uproar in the House with the Opposition demanding that she authenticate the statement.<br />''<br />''Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar asked Kharge and Sitharaman to authenticate Vajpayee's quoted remark during the course of the day. Mr. Dhankhar said the Chair will deal with the situation if any of Vajpayee's comments were truncated to suit any side as he was a former prime minister, a Bharat Ratna and a great son of this country.<br />''<br />''<br />''<span style="color: #222222;">In his speech, Kharge also said Gujarat stands among the lower-rung States in terms of infant mortality rate and malnutrition. According to Niti Ayog and Harvard, Gujarat is among the lowest on various health indicators, he said. Six among the lowest performing 10 districts on the list are from Gujarat, he added. Mr. Kharge said Narendra Modi served as the chief minister of Gujarat for 13.5 years and is holding the post of Prime Minister for nine years.</span><br />

<span style="color: #222222;">Parliament today passed The Maritime Anti Piracy Bill, 2022 with Rajya Sabha approving it today. Lok Sabha has already passed it earlier.<br />''<br />''The Bill seeks to make special provisions for the repression of piracy on high seas with the Government adding life imprisonment along with the provision of the death penalty for those convicted of the crime.<br />''<br />''The Anti-Maritime Piracy Bill was brought in 2019. After undergoing scrutiny by a parliamentary panel, the Government moved amendments in the Monsoon session of Parliament.<br />''<br />''Moving the Bill, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said, it will strengthen India's maritime security, give it an effective legal instrument to combat the menace and it will make the country fulfill its international obligations and improve India's standing at global forums.<br />''<br />''The Bill seeks to make special provisions for the repression of piracy on high seas with the government adding life imprisonment along with the provision of death penalty for those convicted of the crime.<br />''<br />''Highlighting the significance of the Bill, Jaishankar said the ministry held several rounds of extensive inter-ministerial consultations with the departments concerned to incorporate the recommendations of the Standing Committee on the Bill. Out of 18 recommendations of the Standing Committee, 14 of them have been incorporated suitably in the Bill, he said, adding that three recommendations were only observations which too have been duly noted.<br />''<br />''In the absence of a specific law or a legal provision in the Indian Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code on Piracy, the Minister said, the Bill would provide an effective legal instrument to combat maritime piracy. He added that it would enable India to discharge its obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.<br />''<br />''Members cutting across party lines supported the Bill although some of them had suggested that few of the provisions could be improved.<br />''<br />''Supporting the Bill, Vivek Tankha of Congress said India will be delighted to have this law but asked the government to look at some of the harsh provisions, including bail provisions for those arrested.<br />''<br />''Prakash Javedkar of BJP said it was a good step that the Government has accepted most of the recommendations of the standing committee.<br />''<br />''Jawhar Sircar of TMC, N R Elango of DMK, Sasmit Patra of BJD, Amee Yajnik of Congress, Ayodhya Rami Reddy Alla of YSRCP also supported the Bill.<br />''<br />''Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya CPI(M) called for the removal of the death penalty provision in the Bill.<br />''<br />''Sudhanshu Trivedi of BJP said, the Bill will help the Government to secure the high coast line of the country<br />''<br />''Ramji of BSP and Syed Nasir Hussein of Congress also participated in the debate.<br />''<br />''Rajya Sabha today returned the Supplementary Demands for Grants to Lok Sabha after completing the process of authorising the Government to spend an additional 3.25 lakh crore rupees for current Financial Year.<br />''<br />''Lok Sabha has already approved the Supplementary Demands for Grants, authorising the government to spend the money.<br />''<br />''Replying to the debate on The Appropriation (No.5) Bill, 2022 and Appropriation (No.4) Bill, 2022 in Rajya Sabha, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, the Government is keeping an eye on inflation which is purely extraneous nowadays because of fuel and fertiliser prices. The Minister said, the wholesale inflation has fallen to a 21-month low.<br />''<br />''Retail inflation based on the consumer price index which remained above the Reserve Bank's tolerance level of six percent since January this year has declined to 5.88 percent in November.<br />''<br />''The Finance Minister also said, private investment Capex is taking place in India because of favourable policies like Production Linked Incentive and cited a few examples. She also stressed that the Supplementary Demand for Grants is essential for food security, fertiliser requirements and providing support to the Indian economy.<br />''<br />''The Finance Minister said the buoyancy in tax collection will help the Government in meeting the additional expenditure being sought through the Supplementary Demands for Grants.<br />''<br />''She informed the House that the Gross NPAs of banks have declined to a six-year low of 5.9 percent in March 2022.<br />''<br />''She said, the Government's targeted approach to deal with COVID impact has helped India in reviving growth without going into recession.<br />''<br />''Earlier, the Government informed Rajya Sabha that it has asked State governments to release prisoners who have completed their tenure under a special scheme.<br />''<br />''Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Kumar said, the Government has created a special scheme for August 15, 2022, January 26, 2023 and August 15, 2023 under which States have been asked to release such prisoners who are behind bars due to non-payment of fine. He was responding to a supplementary question asked by Imran Pratapgarhi of the Congress party, who raised the issue of the release of convicts in the Bilkis Bano case. Pratapgarhi sought a reply of the Minister on whether the release of convicts in the Bilkis Bano rape case and murder of seven members of her family is a matter of State or Home Ministry will also pay attention to it.<br />''<br />''In his reply, the Minister said, advisories are issued to States for the release of prisoners who have completed their punishment period and asked for putting up a separate notice on matters related to pardon of punishment.<br />''<br />''The Congress member said the Minister tabled an "irresponsible answer" to his question.  Kumar said, around 80 percent of prisoners in India are under trial and asked steps being taken by the government to reduce their number.<br />''<br />''Raghav Chadha of Aam Aadmi Party asked about the status of the promise made by the Prime Minister on the eve of Gurupurab for the release of Sikh prisoners.<br />''<br />''Replying to it, the Minister said, State governments have been asked to send their proposals and a decision will be taken from the state is received about matters pertaining to their State.<br />''<br />''Earlier, Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar refused to accept two notices on the border issue with China and the hike in the prices of essential commodities, saying they were not in order.<br />''<br />''However, he assured the Opposition members that he would invoke the relevant rules on merit.<br />''<br />''The Chairman had given a similar assurance to the members while rejecting six similar notices yesterday.<br />''<br />''During Zero Hour, Dhankar said he has received notices from Dola Sen of TMC and Pramod Tiwari of Congress for suspension of rules under Rule 267. The same is not in order, he said on Sen's notice on rising prices of essential commodities. Tiwari's notice was on concern over illegal and unprovoked Chinese transgressions in Depsang Plains and parts of Arunachal Pradesh. Dhankhar said, the notice of Tiwari is lacking in every element of the Rule 267.<br />''<br />''The government today informed Rajya Saha that it has no plans to reduce the age of consent for consensual relationships. In a written reply to a question whether the Government is considering changing the age of consent for consensual relationships to 16 years from the present 18 years, Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani said the question "does not arise".<br />''<br />''The minister said the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act, 2012 enacted to safeguard children from sexual abuse and sexual offences clearly defines a child as any person below the age of 18 years.<br />''<br />''The Act was further amended in 2019 to introduce more stringent punishment, including death penalty for committing sexual crimes on children, with a view to deter the perpetrators and prevent such crimes against children.<br />''<br />''The Minister added that The Majority Act, 1875, which was amended in 1999, provides 18 years as the age for attainment of majority.<br />''<br />''In reply to another written question on child marriages, the minister informed Rajya Sabha that number of cases of child marriages reported has increased over the last few years as per the data of National Crime Records Bureau, but added that it does not necessarily reflect increase in the number of cases of child marriages, but maybe because of increased awareness.<br />''<br />''In 2019, 523 cases of child marriage were reported, in 2020 it was 785, and in 2021, it was 1050.</span><br />

<span style="color: #222222;">The Rajya Sabha today held a discussion on serious effects of global warming and the need for remedial steps, with opposition members saying that it is the responsibility of everyone to jointly tackle it.<br />''<br />''Members said everyone has to work together to tackle the problems and urged the government to take a holistic approach by coordinating across various ministries and bringing agencies together to tackle the effects of global warming.<br />''<br />''Initiating the discussion, Tiruchi Siva of DMK said global warming is threatening not just India but the entire planet and humanity, and it is time for collective efforts. He said it is not the prerogative of only the Central government, but it is also of the state governments, private sector and the civil society. Everyone in the country has his own responsibility to tackle this issue. Siva said the environment ministry has to coordinate with other ministries such as agriculture, urban development and industries so that a holistic approach is taken as activities in each of these areas have a consequence on the environment. He also voiced concern over a "recent Environment Impact Assessment notification, the Environment Protection Act, the Water Act, the Forest Conservation Act and the Biodiversity Act", saying "all these will result in degradation of forest. He said protection and extending the forests will save the nation and the world, which in turn would save humans.<br />''<br />''Pramod Tiwari of the Congress and Sandosh Kumar P of the Communist Party of India also raised the "short duration" discussion.<br />''<br />''Amee Yajnik of Congress reiterated the need to enhance India's usage of renewable and clean energy and reduce dependence on fossil fuels while increasing forest cover to meet the net zero target set for 2070. She said, all these require a holistic approach. Unless and until we do not bring a coordinated effort to bring all these agencies together to have an approach to see that we bring down net zero, this will not fructify, she asserted.<br />''<br />''Jawahar Sircar of Trinamool Congress said, climate change affects the coastal states of the country the most as one of the most immediate effects is the rise in sea levels. He expressed concern that the heatwave witnessed from mid-April has led to 5 percent less wheat procurement, while the delayed monsoon that followed has led to a lesser yield of paddy crop.<br />''<br />''Kavita Patidar of BJP cautioned that the melting of glaciers and wildfires are becoming frequent in a different parts of the world due to climate change, while the rising sea levels are threatening many coastal cities. She said there will be dire consequences unless corrective steps are taken to protect the environment, while pointing out that climate change also has its impact on the economy.<br />''<br />''Sanjay Singh of Aam Aadmi Party suggested starting work on linking rivers to bring a permanent solution to floods and droughts in the country. Amar Patnaik of Biju Janata Dal suggested the government to relook into the Disaster Management Act and make changes according to new challenges. He said many of the climate changes are irreversible disasters, not like cyclones that will go away and floods which will be over.<br />''<br />''S Niranjan Reddy of YSRCP said India is more vulnerable to global warming and states such as Andhra Pradesh on the eastern coastline are facing a greater risk than those on the western coast. He also said the world is moving towards a climate fund, where the developed countries have larger contributions for pollution and pay towards climate funds, which are used to mitigate the impacts in lesser-polluted countries.<br />''<br />''K Keshava Rao of TRS said India is ranked number four on the list of countries most affected by such factors, adding that 10 developed countries account for two-thirds of the emissions worldwide while India contributes only three percent.<br />''<br />''A D Singh of Rashtriya Janata Dal said the government should take steps to promote alternative energy sources such as setting up parks to harness tidal energy, wind energy and geothermal energy.<br />''<br />''John Brittas of CPIM said, the world is paying the price of the greed of human beings and developed nations.<br />''<br />''Sudhanshu Trivedi of BJP pointed out that in the last 100 years, the average temperature of the planet has increased by one degree Celsius and the last 35 years have seen the five hottest summers.<br />''<br />''Participating in the discussion, Ram Gopal Yadav of Samajwadi Party suggested the government start rationing petrol and diesel to mitigate the effect of global warming. He said such measures can lead to loss in elections. He said, stringent measures are required to stop forest cutting.<br />''<br />''Ranjeet Ranjan of Congress, John Brittas of CPIM, Aneel Prasad Hegde of JDU, Birendra Prasad Baishya of AGP, Ramji of BSP, Vandana Chavan of NCP and Surendra Singh Nagar of BJP also participated in the discussion.<br />''<br />''The discussion remained inconclusive and will continue on Monday as some members are yet to speak on the issue. Earlier soon after the laying of papers, opposition members raised uproar in the house after deputy chairman Harivansh disallowed adjournment notices given by seven members.<br />''<br />''The House saw three brief adjournments during the first hour as opposition members continued to create din. The House witnessed two back-to-back adjournments of 15 minutes each and then again for a few minutes during the Zero Hour.<br />''<br />''Opposition members sought clarifications on why their adjournment notices were not taken up and demanded discussions on various issues. They also cited previous precedents in the House when discussions under relevant rules were taken up without any mention of the rule required for suspension of business. This led to uproar following which the Deputy Chairman adjourned the proceedings for 15 minutes first and then again for another 15 minutes when the House met a little after 11.30 AM.<br />''<br />''Later, when the House met again Bhubaneshwar Kalita, who was in the chair, adjourned the proceedings for a few minutes till 12 noon.<br />''<br />''While opposition members created uproar over not being allowed discussion on issues raised by them, BJP members were also on their feet raising the issue of the Bihar hooch tragedy. Biplab Kumar Dev of BJP demanded a discussion on the hooch tragedy matter in Bihar instead of his listed Zero Hour submission.<br />''<br />''Seven opposition members had given adjournment notices for discussing various issues of importance, which were not allowed by the chair.<br />''<br />''Raghav Chadha (AAP), Pramod Tiwari, Akhilesh Prasad Singh, L Hanumanthaiah (Congress), Priyanka Chaturvedi (Shiv Sena), Jebi Mather and Syed Nasir Hussain (Congress) had given adjournment notices on subjects related to concern over government's alleged attempt to interfere in appointment in higher judiciary, alleged misuse of CBI, ED and other government agencies.<br />''<br />''As the deputy chairman urged members to allow the Zero Hour to function, members raised strong objections leading to disruption of the proceedings.<br />''<br />''Derek O'Brien, Tiwari and Chaturvedi raised objections and urged the chair to allow discussions as held in the past. Chaturvedi said the House should take up discussion on issues raised by them as they are of importance.<br />''<br />''At this, Leader of the House, Piyush Goyal told Chaturvedi that she was casting aspersions.</span><br />

<span style="color: #222222;">Parliament today passed two Bills – the Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Orders (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022 and New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (Amendment) Bill, 2022.<br />''<br />''The Rajya Sabha has passed 'The Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Orders (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022 today.  The Bill was already passed by the Lok Sabha earlier. It seeks to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 and the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) (Uttar Pradesh) Order, 1967. It is intended to amend the SC order to exclude Gond community as a Scheduled Caste in Chandauli, Kushinagar, Sant Kabir Nagar and Sant Ravidas Nagar districts of Uttar Pradesh and also amends the ST order to recognise the community as ST in these four districts.<br />''<br />''Replying to discussion of the Bill, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda said, the issue has been pending since 1980s and blamed the then Congress-led government for ignoring the plight of the community and denying them their constitutional rights through Schedule Tribes category.<br />''Munda also moved amendments in the Bill and the Bill will again be sent to Lok Sabha for its nod on the amended Bill. Lok Sabha had passed in April this year.<br />''<br />''The Minister said, the Uttar Pradesh government had written a letter related to the Gond community on April 22, 1981 stating that on the basis of their lifestyle, culture and from every aspect, they exhibited characters of scheduled tribes. He added that in those days, the Gond community was included under STs in other states.<br />''<br />''The Minister ruled that the issue has remained unresolved till now with the people of the community unable to raise their voice at the Centre.</span><br />''He also lamented that the then government did not implement the recommendations of the Lokur Committee for the uplift of tribals, keeping in mind their culture, lifestyle, closeness to nature and backwardness, and give them their constitutional rights. As a result, he said the country is facing the issue of tribals being left behind in the growth and development witnessed by India.<br />''<br />''Taking a dig at the Opposition over their attitude towards tribals, Munda said if they had cared, the first woman President from tribal community Droupadi Murmu would have been elected to the top constitutional post unanimously and now some of them have even started criticising her as well.<br />''<br />''The Rajya Sabha has also passed the 'New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (Amendment) Bill, 2022 is to rename the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre as the India International Arbitration Centre. Lok Sabha has already passed the Bill in August 2022, which expands this to include the conduct of other forms of alternative dispute resolution besides arbitration.<br />''<br />''Replying to the debate, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said, this Bill will help India emerge as an attractive destination for arbitration at the global level.<br />''<br />''India is still not a hub for arbitration, while small countries and cities have emerged as major centres for arbitration, the Minister said. He assured the members that the steps being taken by the Modi government, India would emerge as an arbitration centre in the coming years. He made it clear that the Bill was not brought under any pressure from the World Bank and it was the Government's own decision. He said, people prefer places such as Singapore, London and Hong Kong for arbitration but after this initiative, there would be changes. The country is emerging as an economic power and along with that India will also attract the global business community for arbitration, Rijiju said.  We can provide arbitration awards at more affordable charges in comparative to those centres, he said, adding that the Government wants to start work in this direction as soon as possible.<br />''<br />''Replying to a query over the name change, Rijiju said important cities in India such as Mumbai and Kolkata have their own arbitration centres. He asserted that since 2015, India ranked 142nd in the international Ease of Doing Business and the latest assessment in 2021 puts India in 63rd rank.<br />''<br />''Participating in the debate, Vivek K Tankha of Congress supported the Bill and said, we want India to emerge as an international arbitration centre. This is a welcome change. He cited example of the other reputed arbitration centres in the world and stated that all such centres are run by societies. He said, Singapore is doing very well and fifty-four per cent of people choose Singapore as the seat of arbitration. In South East Asia, 74 per cent choose Singapore only, he said. The member said, Indians too choose London, Geneva or Paris.<br />''<br />''Sushil Kumar Modi of BJP also stressed on the need for improving the standard of the centre citing that Amazon Future arbitration case is going on in Singapore. He demanded that the Supreme Court and High Courts in the country should also function round the year like other institutions. He pointed out that the Apex Court and high courts go for vacation in summers as well as winters, especially when there is a huge pendency of cases.<br />''<br />''Sukhendu Sekhar Ray of TMC said this government has come to know about the change in the name of the centre after the lapse of three year since the Act came into existence in 2019.<br />''<br />''P Wilson of DMK also supported the Bill but pointed out that it puts 2.5 lakh rupees burden on the exchequer for running Parliament for a minute.<br />''<br />''Prashanta Nanda of BJD and V Vijayasai Reddy of YSR Congress supported the Bill.<br />''<br />''Soon after the House met, Opposition members led by the Congress demanded a discussion on the Indo-China conflict at the border in Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh. Opposition leader Mallikarjun Kharge said, several members have given adjournment notices and a discussion on Chinese aggression should be allowed in the house. The Chair disallowed the demand for discussion leading to the entire opposition staging a walkout.<br />''<br />''Kharge said, the Opposition parties wanted a debate to get full information on the Chinese aggression and encroachment on Indian territory, and that they stand by the Army and the country.<br />''<br />''Deputy Chairman Harivansh said there was no notice before the Chair and a debate cannot be allowed on the issue.<br />''<br />''Opposition members shouted slogans for some time before staging a walkout. Those who walked out included members of Congress, Left, TMC, NCP, RJD, SP, JMM, and Shiv Sena.<br />''<br />''During the zero hour, Vandana Chavan of NCP said there should be more studies to understand the impact of 'long Covid' on people's health, otherwise this might end up becoming a "parallel pandemic".<br />''<br />''S Selvaganabathy of BJP said, the setting up an integrated pharmaceutical innovation park in Puducherry will promote the pharma industry. This will not only help it become a global leader in manufacturing of quality medicine, but also make India self-reliant in production of indigenous drugs at affordable prices, he said.<br />''<br />''P Wilson of DMK and Sanajaoba Leishemba of BJP also raised the matters of public importance.<br />''<br />''<br />''<span style="color: #222222;">Earlier, the Rajya Sabha mourned the demise of former members Yoginder K Alagh and R C Singh with members observing silence.</span><br />

<span style="color: #222222;">In the Rajya Sabha today, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman moved the Jammu & Kashmiar Appropriation Bill and Jammu and Kashmir Appropriation (no 2) Bill for consideration and return.<br />''<br />''Initiating the discussion on the Bills,  Vivek Tankha of Congress said that in the last over five years, Jammu and Kashmir has been either under Governor's rule or President rule<br />''<br />''There is no Assembly to discuss the budget proposals for Jammu and Kashmir. Members of the Rajya Sabha are discussing the budget for Jammu and Kashmir but Kashmiri people are not discussing it.  Even the four members of the Rajya Sabha from Kashmir are not here to  discuss the  budget, he said. Mr. Tankha  said, no investment is coming into Jammu and Kashmir because there is no climate for investment.<br />''<br />''Anil jain of BJP said, there was need to restore faith in the state which is what the Narendra modi government has tried to do in the last three years. He said, the abrogattion of Article 370 is in a way realization of the vision of the late Shyama Prasad Mukherjee who was for a single system and Constitution for the entire country.<br />''<br />''Mohammed Nadimul Haque of Trinamool Congress alleged that under the Governor rule,  Jammu and Kashmir has transformed into a police state. This evoked uproar from members of the treasury benches. The Trinamool Congress member raised questions on the allocation of 90,555 crore rupees for Police and Home departments in Jammu and Kashmir.<br />''<br />''Sudhanshu Trivedi of BJP said, the unemployment rate has come down from 20 percent in 2016 to 16 percent at present in Jammu and Kashmir. He said that Jammu & Kashmir has become a open defection free state.<br />''<br />'' G. Kishen Reddy of the BJP said that there has been a growth in the tourism sector after abrogattion of Article 370. Tourism has received a boost after abrogattion of Article 370, he said. He said that tourist inflow has increased by three times since 2019.<br />''Ram Gopal Yadav of the Samajwadi Party said, the present government cannot escape responsibility for rehabilitation of Kashmiri pandits.<br />''Benoy Vishvam of CPI said, the present government is creating difficulties in the growth of Jammu and Kashmir. He said that there is a need to restore faith in Jammu and Kashmir.<br />''V Sivadasan of the CPI-M, Priyanka Chaturvedi of Shiv Sena, Fauzia Khan of NCP, Rajani Patil of Congress, Ram Nath Thakur of JD(U), M Thambidurai of AIADMK also participated in the debate.<br />''Earlier, proceedings in the Rajya Sabha began with Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu making a reference on the occassion of World Water Day. He said, this year the UN theme of world water day is Ground water. Sustenance of life depends on ground water. With increase in population and urbanization demand for water has increased.  Conservation of water and preservation of water resources is of utmost importance for our country. This House supports efforts for conservation of water, he said.<br />''Mr. Naidu also made a reference to the China Eastern Airlines crash yesterday. He said, the House conveys India's stand of solidarity with them in their hour of grief.<br />''Later, the House observed silence as a mark of respect to those who died in China air crash.<br />''The Chairman said, he has received notices under relevant rules from various opposition members against hike in prices of petrol and LPG . However,  they have been disallowed,  he said. This led to protests by opposition members who trooped in the well of the House.<br />''The Chairman appealed to members to allow the Zero Hour to proceed. When the protest continued, he warned that the protesting members would be named in the House bulletin. Thereafter,  he adjourned the House till noon.<br />''When the House reassembled, the Opposition members again entered the well of the House and raised slogans  protesting the rise in fuel prices.<br />''Amid the protests,  Deputy Chairman Harivansh took up the Question hour. However,  nothing could be heard in the din due to opposition protests. He adjourned the House till 2 PM following continued protests.<br />''When the House reassembled at 2 PM, the Deputy Chairman called for taking up Jammu & Kashmiar Appropriation Bill and Jammu and Kashmir Appropriation (no 2) Bill.</span><br />

The issue of suspension of 12 opposition MPs continued to rock  the Rajya Sabha for the fourth week in the Winter session of Parliament. However, the Upper House also passed the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS)(Amendment) Bill, 2021 while the Mediation Bill, 2021 was referred to the Standing Committee of Law and Justice.<br />''<br />''The House also briefly discussed the threat caused by Omicron variant of COVID-19 in the country.  <br />''<br />''In the morning, soon after the laying of papers, members of the Opposition sought to raise the issue of suspension of the MPs even as Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu called for Zero Hour.<br />''<br />''Amid uproar by the Opposition,  the Chairman said that he is disappointed over the lack of consensus on the issue.<br />''Thereafter, he adjourned the House till 2 PM.<br />''<br />''When the House reassembled at 2 pm, Deputy Chairman Harivansh called upon the minister of state for Law and Justice S P Singh Baghel to introduce the Mediation Bill  2021 in the House.<br />''<br />''Amid noisy scenes, the Minister of state for Law and Justice introduced a resolution to refer the Mediation Bill 2021 to the Parliamentary Standing Committee.  <br />''<br />''The resolution was passed by a voice vote. Thereafter, the Deputy Chairman Harivansh called for resuming Short Duration discussion on the spread of Omicron variant of COVID-19.<br />''<br />''Mr  Harivansh urged the Opposition to allow discussion on the issue which is a matter of concern for the people of the country.<br />''Syed Zafar Islam of the BJP urged opposition to allow discussion on the issue as Omicron is a variant which poses a serious threat to the people of the country. However, as noisy scenes continued, even after repeated pleas, the Deputy Chairman adjourned the House till 3 pm.<br />''<br />''When the House resumed after adjournment, responding to the discussion amid noisy scenes, Health Minister Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya lamented that the Opposition did not participate in discussion on such an important issue where as the same issue was discussed in the Lok Sabha till late in the night.<br />''<br />''He said that the country is fully prepared to deal with the challenge posed by the Omicron variant of COVID-19 and waged a strong fight against Covid-19 under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.<br />''<br />''After the discussion, the Chair asked Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to move The Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances(Amendment) Bill, 2021 for consideration.<br />''<br />''The Bill seeks to amend 1985Act, on the subject.<br />''<br />''On the other hand, Shaktisinh Gohil of the Congress moved a resolution simultaneously, to disapprove of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Amendment) Ordinance, 2021 .<br />''<br />''Even as the Chair asked for starting discussionon the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Amendment) Bill, 2021 and Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Amendment) Ordinance,2021, Congress member Digvijaya Singh sought to raise the issue of suspension of 12 Opposition MPs.<br />''<br />''However,  the Chair said that anything other than that on the Bill will not go on record.<br />''Speaking on the Bill, nominated member Suresh Gopi, in support of the Bill said it is critical to discuss the illicit and licit use of drugs for the future of country's Youth.<br />''<br />''All India Trinamool Congress Member Nadimul Haque and DMK member Tiruchi Siva sought to raise the issue of suspension of 12 Opposition MPs , but  the Chair did not allow their statements to go on record.<br />''<br />''Amid noisy scenes by the Opposition, demanding withdrawal of suspension of 12 Opposition MPs and sacking of Union Minister Ajay Kumar Mishra , BJD MP Prashant Nanda and M Thambidurai of the AIADMK spoke in favourof the Bill.<br />''<br />''The  House continued to witness chaos as discussion on the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Amendment) Bill, 2021 failing to make much headway.<br />''<br />''When Jaya Bachchan of the Samajwadi party ,asked to speak on the Bill, sought instead to raise the issue of suspension of opposition MPs and blamed the Chair for not allowing Opposition MPs to put across their point of view.  <br />''<br />''Rakesh Sinha of the BJP objected to Mrs. Bachchan's remark and blamed Opposition of casting aspersions on the Chair.<br />''Meanwhile, Jaya Bachchan alleged that a ruling party member has made a personal remarks against her.<br />''Amid uproar, the Presiding Officer Bhubaneswar Kalita adjourned the House till 5 PM.<br />''<br />''When the House reassembled, JD (U) member Ramnath Thakur spoke in favour of the Bill.<br />''Raising a Point of order, Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge said that the opposition has been repeatedly saying that a man who is supporting an accused in Lakhimpur Kheri incident is still in the ministry, he should be removed.<br />''Thereafter, the Opposition parties walked out of the house in protest.<br />''<br />''Supporting the Bill Sushil Kumar Gupta of Aam Aadmi Party, said that lives of several youth have been impacted by drug abuse.<br />''Replying to the discussion, Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the Ordinance was necessitated due to Tripura High Court order.<br />''<br />''She said, Court orders came in September when the House was not in session so an Ordinance was necessitated.<br />''She also said that the Bill is to correct an error committed during the UPA rule.<br />''<br />''The Bill was passed by voice vote after the House negated the Statutory resolution disapproving of the Ordinance.<br />''With the Bill already having been passed by the Lok Sabha, therefore it has now received the approval of Parliament.<br />''Thereafter, the Chair called for laying of Special Mentions.<br />''<br />''After the laying of Special Mentions,  the House was adjourned for the Day.<br />

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal has said the passenger train operations undertaken through the Public Private Partnership mode is targeted to bring a total investment of about 30 thousand crore rupees. Ruling out the privatisation of railway infrastructure, he said the government has plans to monetise its assets to generate the resources to boost the growth of the railways. He was replying to a question during the Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha today. He said, Railways plans to monetise assets including through Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors after commissioning the induction of 150 modern rakes through PPP, station redevelopment, railway land parcels, multi-functional complexes, railway colonies, hill railways and stadiums.<br />''<br />''The Minister said Asset monetisation would help in generating more resources towards infrastructure creation. The Railways Minister said dedicated freight corridors are a separate corporate entity and the railways is supporting them. Mr. Goyal said his Ministry is committed towards enhancing the pace of infrastructure development, which is vital for the national economy as a whole. The railways would always be a key economic driver in the strategy of investment-led economic growth, he added.<br />''<br />''Mr. Goyal said modern train is the need of the day, and the railways has got historic 2.15 lakh crore rupees allotment under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In reply to a query by the Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge about a proposal to merge three divisions of Gulbarga in Karnataka, Mr. Goyal said the Railway Board did not find it feasible.<br />''<br />''In a reply to another supplementary, he said for seven routes dedicated to semi – high speed passenger corridors, the government is talking to state governments. He said there has been good response from the Uttar Pradesh Government which is cooperating on the Delhi-Varanasi route, mostly elevated along the highways.<br />''Mr. Goyal said the railways generated 14.14 lakh mandays employment under the Centre's Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan in identified districts of six states to expeditiously re-start economic activities post-lockdown, Mr. Goyal said in reply to another query.<br />''<br />''In a written reply to a question on estimated job loss or work loss post-lockdown especially for those indirectly dependent on the Railways for their livelihoods, he said the Ministry has not undertaken any such study. However, to expeditiously re-start economic activities after lifting of lockdown so as to provide employment opportunities to the contract workers engaged by contractors, Railways took a number of measures. He said Railways generated over 14 lakh Mandays employment in 140 projects. He said the employment was generated in identified districts across six states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Odisha.<br />''<br />''Earlier, as soon as the House met for the day, Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu urged the Members to remain extra careful and strictly follow the coronavirus-related guidelines in the wake of rise in the number of cases in some states. He said while the severity has come down, reports are coming from certain states that the pandemic is spreading. He asked them to follow strictly the advice given by the Health Ministry and Home Ministry, central government, as well as the guidelines issued by the state governments concerned from time to time and see to it that they are implemented.<br />''<br />''Mr. Naidu further said MPs should take interest to see that common people too are guided properly. The Chairman also urged MPs and their family members, who are eligible, to get themselves vaccinated.<br />''<br />''Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in a separate matter said imported life-saving drugs including those for spinal muscular atrophy disease for personal use are exempted from basic customs duty but they attract five per cent GST. However, ad hoc exemption from goods and services tax on imported life-saving drugs are given on a case-to-case basis during exceptional nature and when such a request is received, she said. She gave the clarification sought by Vivek K Tankha of the Congress during Zero Hour earlier.<br />''<br />''The Minister said the member had day before yesterday stated that there is one medicine to treat spinal muscular atrophy disease which costs about 16 crore rupees and there is a tax component at 7 crore rupees.<br />''<br />''<span style="color: #222222;">All life-saving drugs imported for personal use are "exempted from basic customs duty" either unconditionally for specified medicine or subject to a certificate to be issued by Health authorities. The House took up discussion on the working of the Tourism Ministry. Members also raised several matters of public importance through Zero Hour mentions and Special mentions.</span><br />

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said India's reputation as Pharmacy of the World stands reinforced the way it reached out to other countries in the midst of a global crisis by supplying Covid-19 vaccines to 72 nations.<br />'' <br />''Making a statement on Vaccine Maitri initiative in the Rajya Sabha today, he said the supply of 'Made-in-India' vaccine to 72 nations when the world was reeling under COVID-19 pandemic prompted global leaders and world citizens extend warmth to India and its citizens.<br />'' <br />''Even as the COVID pandemic was in full fury, there were already global demands for India's pharmaceutical and medical capabilities which could be met largely due to the extraordinary ramp up of India's COVID-related capabilities, the Minister said.<br />'' <br />''Talking about low fatality rates and the high recovery rates, he said: "Our reputation as the 'pharmacy of the world' has been reinforced. So indeed, has the faith in 'Make in India'. But more than the vaccines, New Delhi's policies and conduct have emerged as a source of strength for the stressed and vulnerable nations of the world. They can see that there is at least one major nation that truly believes in making vaccines accessible and affordable to others in dire need. He said Vaccine Maitri began in the immediate neighbourhood, starting with the Maldives, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, as also Mauritius and Seychelles and thereafter to the Gulf.<br />'' <br />''The Minister said, we have supplied 'Made in India' vaccines to 72 nations across geographies.<br />'' <br />''Mr. Jaishankar said there was an external beneficial impact of India's capabilities and it could meet the spiking requirements of hydroxychloroquine, paracetamol and other relevant drugs across the world. The Minister said, we supplied 150 nations with medicines, 82 of them as grants. As our own production of masks, PPEs and diagnostic kits grew, we made them available to other nations. This generous approach was also extended to the Vande Bharat Mission.<br />''Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision has provided an over-arching framework to make India's goodwill meaningful in terms of practical initiatives and activities that reflected in its humanitarian assistance and disaster responses, whether in Yemen, Nepal, Mozambique or Fiji. It is this outlook of human-centric global cooperation that is the driving force of Vaccine Maitri, he said.<br />'' <br />''The External Affairs Minister said New Delhi also offered to enhance cold chain and storage capacities for the delivery of vaccines. This approach is not only in keeping with our age-old tradition of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.<br />'' <br />''Rajya Sabha today took up the discussion on the working of the Ministry of Railways. Sujeet Kumar of BJD said, the government has increased budgetary allocation for capital expenditure in the Railway sector. Ram Vichar Netam of BJP said, the rail accidents have decreased.<br />'' <br />''Replying to the debate, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal said, over 64 lakh migrant labourers reached home safely through Shramik trains during the covid pandemic. He said free meals and free packaged drinking water were provided in the Shramik trains.<br />'' <br />''The Minister said, every state was given the number of trains they demanded. He said, trains were converted into isolation wards on suggestion from the Prime Minister to provide an option for isolating covid infected patients.<br />'' <br />''Earlier, Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu accepted the resignation of nominated member Swapan Dasgupta, who tendered his resignation from the Upper House of Parliament yesterday.<br />'' <br />''During Question Hour earlier, Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said that we are now going to relocate to a new Parliament building where we will have enough space. The government has obtained necessary approvals for building a new Parliament by 2022 and for the Central Vista Avenue.  During the stage of building a new central secretariat complex, some of the buildings will be demolished, Mr. Puri said. He said the idea is to bring all offices in the central secretariat complex which will have space for 50,000 people working and connected through an underground shuttle tunnel so that transportation is very easy. The Minister said, Each step will be taken with timeline, cost estimate, among others.  Mr. Puri  said, Tata Projects Limited had won the tender for the construction of the new Parliament building.<br />'' <br />''During Question Hour, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said states like Maharashtra should reduce taxes on fuel to give relief to consumers and remained non-committal on cutting central taxes.<br />'' <br />''<span style="color: #222222;">Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy said the government has sought inputs from various quarters for criminal law reforms including sedition and has set up a committee for it.</span><br />

<span style="color: #222222;">Parliament has passed the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill 2020 and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill 2020 with the Rajya Sabha approving it today amid the uproar by the opposition parties. The House also negated the oppositions' amendments to send the Bills to the Select Committee. Lok Sabha has passed the bill earlier.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">The House was adjourned for ten minutes during the discussion when opposition members including Congress, TMC, Left, Aam Adami Party came into the well and started sloganeering and protest against the two Bills. When the House reassembled, the Chair was guarded by the marshals and amid sloganeering and ruckus the two bills were passed by voice vote.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Moving the bills, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar described them as historic and will bring revolutionary changes in the lives of the farmers across the country. He said the farmers will have the freedom to sell their produce wherever they want. The Minister made it clear that the bills are not related to Minimum Support Price (MSP) and assured that the system will continue. The Minister said the farmers across the country dedicated themselves to the farming despite the country facing the unprecedented Covid-19 infections.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Earlier, participating in the discussion on the two bills, several members favoured that they be referred to the Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha for further discussions.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Initiating a discussion on the Bills, Pratap Singh Bajwa of the Congress alleged that the Bills are a move to end the Minimum Support Price system in the country and pave way for corporate houses to take over farmlands. He said the Bills are an assault on the soul of farmers saying they are ill-conceived. He said farmers are not illiterates. Mr Bajwa alleged that once these bills are passed, the corporate houses will take over the farmlands. He said nearly, one lakh Indians are getting COVID-19 every day.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Responding to the criticism by the Congress, Bhupinder Yadav of the BJP said there is a need to strengthen trade, processing and value addition which is what the bills propose to do. He said the country is moving forward. He wanted to know why has rural income reduced over the years when Congress was in power. He said that a working group on agriculture production set up by Manmohan Singh government in 2010 had recommended that Agriculture Produce Marketing Committees and corporate license monopolies should not be allowed.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Other members who participated in the discussion included, K K Ragesh of CPI-M, Bhupendra Yadav of BJP, Derek 'O' Brien of Trinamool Congress, Tiruchi Siva of DMK, K C Venugopal of Congress, S.R Balasubramonian of AIADMK, Prof. Ram Gopal Yadav of Samajwadi Party, Dr. K Keshava Rao of TRS, V. Vijayasai Reddy of YSRCP, Rama Chandra Prasad Singh of JD-U, Prof Manoj Kumar Jha of RJD, Dr. Amar Patnaik of BJD, Sardar Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa of Akali Dal</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Earlier, the proceedings of the House began with administering the oath of office and secrecy to the former Prime Minister and newly-elected Rajya Sabha member H.D. Deve Gowda. Welcoming him, Chairman Venkaiah Naidu observed that Mr. Deve Gowda is a good addition to the House. One of the senior-most politicians in the country has come to our House.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Replying to a discussion on the debate on the Bill, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar reiterated that the Bill does not deal with MSPs and there is no need to worry about that. He said, the Narendra Modi led government had taken many steps aimed at doubling the farmers' income in the past six year. He said, there is no need to doubt that the farmers will continue to get the Minimum Support Price for their agriculture produce.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Later, the House witnessed unruly scenes amid uproar with the Opposition demanding the adjournment of the proceedings for the day and the voting on the bills be taken up the next day.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Deputy Chairman Harivansh asked if the House agrees to extend proceedings beyond 1 p.m. till disposal of the Bills. To this, Opposition members protested. Some members headed towards the Well of the House despite repeated requests by the Deputy Chairman asking them to go back to their seats.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said that the norm is that the House timing is extended on the basis of consensus, not numbers. He said that the consensus is that the House be adjourned for the day. However, Deputy Chairman has asked the Minister Mr. Tomar to wind up his speech amid commotion.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Later, the bills were adopted by voice vote amid opposition protests. Derek O'Brien of the Trinamool Congress and other Opposition members shouted slogans against the government. Marshals were seen obstructing some opposition members from reaching the Podium. Amid uproar, Deputy Chairman adjourned the house briefly. When the House reassembled, Deputy Chairman Harivansh took up voting on the bills.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">After the passage of the Bills, the Deputy Chairman adjourned the house for the day. Matters of public importance were raised during the Zero Hour. Rajmani Patel of Congress raised issue of private schools charging hefty fees while Manoj Kumar Jha of the RJD called for the need to find a permanent solution to the frequent flooding in Bihar. Biswajit Daimary of BPF raised the matter of five men from Arunachal Pradesh being taken by Chinese. He said Arunachal Pradesh is also tense, like Ladakh. Saroj Pandey of the BJP raised the issue of Chhattisgarh not having fully implemented Ayushman Bharat.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Members also raised matters through Special Mentions. They included Kamakhya Prasad Sasa of BJP, Ravi Prakash Verma of Samajwadi Party, Sambhaji Chatrapati of BJP, Jairam Ramesh of Congress and Prasanta Nanda of BJD.</span>

<span style="color: #222222;">Parliament has passed the Aircraft (Amendment) Bill, 2020 with the Rajya Sabha approving it today. The Bill was passed earlier by the Lok Sabha. Replying to a discussion on the Bill, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said, privatisation of the sector will help in the development of airports in the country. He cited the example of successful privatization process of Delhi and Mumbai airports saying that privatization of these airports have garnered 29 thousand crore rupees which was spent on the development of other airports in the country. Earlier, initiating the discussion K C Venugopal of the Congress questioned the government's move to lease out the airports including Trivandrum and Jaipur. Several members expressed their views against the selling of Air India. On the air safety issue, the Minister said, the government will not compromise on it and India is doing well on the several parameters set by the air safety regulators. Appreciating the life line Udaan and Vande Bharat Scheme, he said, 16 lakh passengers were repatriated from the other countries. Responding to the debate, the Minister assured that there is no compromise on aviation safety. He said, the government has recruited 1,000 air traffic controllers in the last three years. The vacancy stands at 3,500. He said, it would have been filled up this year itself had COVID-19 not slowed down the process.<br />'' <br />'' Binoy Visvam of CPI criticized the government on the issue. Dinesh Trivedi of Trinamool Congress said, Air India has played a vital role during the Vande Bharat Mission and plan for selling the airline should be reconsidered by the government. He urged the government to bring overall changes in the Aircraft Act, 1934. Prashanna Acharya of BJD said, strict regulations need to be adopted for the safety of aircraft and passengers. G V L Narshimha Rao of BJP said, the aviation sector has seen the transformational change in the recent times. He lauded the Udaan Scheme saying that air prices have become cheaper and now a common man can afford air travel. He said, the objective of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is to make air travel safer and accessible for all sections of society, not just for the elite.  Vishmbhar Nishad of Samajwadi Party, P. Wilson of DMK, V. Vijayasai Reddy of YSR Congress, Manoj Jha of RJD, Praful Patel of NCP and others participated in the discussion. Mr.  Puri said, the legislation has given new definition to three bodies. He also said, the Bill raises the maximum limit on fines from 10 lakh rupees to one crore rupees. These fines are related to carrying arms, explosives and other dangerous goods aboard aircraft and constructing building or structures within the specified radius around an aerodrome reference point.<br />'' <br />'' Dinesh Trivedi of Trinamool Congress said, Air India has played a vital role during the Vande Bharat Mission and plan for selling the airline should be reconsidered by the government. He urged the government to bring overall changes in the Aircraft Act, 1934.<br />'' <br />'' Earlier, Vijay Sai Reddy of the YSR Congress party raised the issue of Release of funds allocated to Polavaram project from the Centre so that the project can be completed by 2021. Responding to this, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, she was in touch with the Water Resources Minister and the State Finance Minister and will follow up on the matter. She said, the discussion with the Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister has been going on and the Centre will follow up the matter. Vikas Mahatme of the BJP raised the issue of several web series containing abusive language and demanded framing of law to ban them. In her Zero hour mention, Chaya Verma of Congress demanded that the number of days in MGNREGA be increased to 200. K R Suresh Reddy of TRS demanded that the issue of sharing of waters be referred to a tribunal while P Shanmugham of DMK demanded that benefit of PM Kisan be given to all farmers including tenants.<br />'' <br />'' In her zero-hour mention, Jaya Bachchan of Samajwadi Party demanded that government should support the entertainment industry as it brings international name and recognition to the country. She said, the entertainment industry contributes one of the highest taxpayers and also has supported the nation in testing times.<br />'' <br />'' Rajiv Satav of Congress drew attention of the Central Government on reservation of Maratha community. Ram Gopal Yadav of Samajwadi party said, several people are rendered unemployed due to lockdown and are driven towards suicidal deaths. He demanded that such people should be given allowance of 15 thousand rupees per month so that they are not forced to commit suicides. Anand Sharma of the Congress raised the issue of a large number of suicides in the country due to mental illness. He said India accounts for 15 per cent of suicides in the world. There is a Four per cent increase in suicides.<br />'' <br />'' Speaking on mental health issues, especially after COVID-19 and lockdown, he said, several people are committing suicides due to mental health disorder. Centre and States need to establish helpline and service centres to deal with these ailments. Ripun Bora of the Congress spoke on closure of two paper mills in Assam. K.C. Ramamoorthy of the BJP spoke against online Rummy. DMK MP Tiruchi Siva raised the issue of 'adverse impact of holding NEET examinations leading to suicides by students.<br />'' <br />'' Later, the House took up the Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda Bill, 2020 for discussion. After the passage of the Bill, Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan made a statement on the Covid situation in the country. He said, the battle on pandemic is far from over. Even as we are in Unlock, the community support is crucial to break the chain, he said.</span><br />''