The monsoon session of Parliament is normally held in July
New Delhi:
Prospects for an ordinary session of parliament have been called into question, as existing government buildings are deemed insufficient to accommodate all MPs if the COVID-19 physical distance standards are to be met, according to well-placed sources.
With neither the central hall of Parliament nor the plenary hall of Vigyan Bhawan large enough to accommodate all deputies while maintaining a minimum distance of one meter, the presidents of the two chambers learn that they have explored the possibilities of holding a “ hybrid ” session of Parliament or virtual, the sources told the Press Trust of India news agency.
The hybrid session would allow certain deputies to be physically present in Parliament while the others would attend it virtually.
The sources told the PTI news agency that one of the options discussed is to allow the presence in the rooms of the two rooms only of the many members who can be accommodated in accordance with standards of social distancing by drawing up lists of these members whose participation in various affairs is required daily.
The monsoon session of Parliament is normally held in July.
At a meeting convened by the President of Rajya Sabha, Mr. Venkaiah Naidu, and the President of Lok Sabha, Om Birla, the Secretaries General of the two chambers reportedly informed the Presidents that neither the central hall nor the plenary hall of Vigyan Bhawan can accommodate seats. all MPs together.
The meeting has been called to consider various options for holding the next session of the Parliament monsoon.
Informing Venkaiah Naidu and Om Birla of various possibilities, the Secretaries General reported on the results of their assessment of the seating capacity of the two Houses, the central hall of Parliament and the plenary hall of Vigyan Bhawan.
They informed that if the Rajya Sabha room can accommodate around sixty members according to the standards of social distancing, the Lok Sabha room and the central room are adequate enough for a little more than 100 members.
They said that even if the members were to be accommodated in the galleries, the total seating capacity would be much less than that required, if all the members were to be accommodated.
Mr. Naidu and Mr. Birla instructed the two senior officials to examine in detail various questions related to the possibility of allowing the virtual participation of members in the work of the two chambers.
This includes the maximum capacity available to allow such virtual participation of Members, the feasibility of allowing the participation of members in accordance with the operating rules of the two Houses and other technical matters.
Concerning the virtual meetings of parliamentary committees, it was explained that any modification of the rules concerning these meetings required the adoption of a motion in the two chambers of Parliament.
Officers of Parliament also informed the presiding officers of certain other limitations if the central hall and Vigyan Bhawan were to be used for the session. These include the non-availability of air-conditioned facilities during the day in the central hall and problems related to the activation of the simultaneous interpretation service.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
