NEW DELHI:
Rajya Sabha, which has been prone to frequent disruptions under the current dispensation, set a record of sorts on Tuesday by completing all
Zero Hour submissions and special mentions as well as starred questions listed for the day.
Giving credit to the House at the end of the Zero Hour,
Rajya Sabha chairman M
Venkaiah Naidu sought to remind the members of his observation soon after taking over that his "operation" (as Rajya Sabha chairman) would depend on their "cooperation".
"Since your cooperation (today) was good, my operation was very smooth ... I hope in future also if we are able to take up our legislative business regularly. Without wasting time and sticking to the schedule, we will be able to give opportunity to some more people also," said Naidu.
Later, the
Question Hour too saw all questions, supplementaries and minister's replies completed within the scheduled time. While mentioning this just before the House broke for lunch, Naidu did point out that at least 5-6 members who had submitted questions for Tuesday were not present in the House when their names were called. He reminded the MPs that much effort goes into preparing replies to their questions and the "Hon'ble members should keep this in mind" and be present in the House.
Naidu is known to pro-actively participate in proceedings of the House, offering his observations from time to time on the issues raised by the members. He can regularly be heard urging members and ministers alike to be brief and to-the-point while asking/replying to questions, and intervenes, if need be, to ensure the same. In fact, Venkaiah also encourages the ministers to go through the special mentions and submissions made during the Zero Hour after the House adjourns and send replies to the members concerned.
"That will enhance the productivity of the House," he said at the end of the Zero Hour on Tuesday.
Venkaiah Naidu
