Lok Sabha: Prime Minister Modi wore a blue mask!

The monsoon session of Parliament began on Monday, following the guidelines related to the coronavirus epidemic. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who attended the Lok Sabha meeting, ministers and members arrived wearing masks and ensured compliance of social distance.

While Prime Minister Modi was wearing a blue three-ply mask, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Lok Janshakti Party chief Chirag Paswan were seen wearing Madhubani masks. Kalyan Banerjee of Trinamool Congress and some members arrived in the House wearing a face shield. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Defense Minister Rajnath Singh also reached their seats wearing a white mask.

To ensure the safety of the members in the house, a plastic shield cover was placed in front of every seat. Amid the changed seating arrangement in the house, many members were also seen to be helpful in reaching their place. There were around 200 members in the Lok Sabha chamber, while around 30 members were in the gallery.

A large TV screen has been installed in the Lok Sabha Chamber itself, through which members of the Lok Sabha sitting in the Rajya Sabha Chamber were also visible.

Significantly, to ensure the social distance between the coronavirus epidemic, members have been seated in the Rajya Sabha along with the Lok Sabha Chamber, Gallery. On the first day of the monsoon session, the Lok Sabha proceedings began with the national anthem as per tradition.

On arrival of Prime Minister Modi in the House, members of the electoral office greeted him with applause and also raised slogans of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai'. Prime Minister Modi, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, and Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar were present in the first row on the ruling side. Along with this, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and many other ministers of the government were also present.

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chaudhary and several other party leaders were present on the opposition side. Farooq Abdullah reached the Lok Sabha for the first time after his release from custody. Adhir Ranjan Chaudhary, Supriya Sule, Dayanidhi Maran, and some other members were seen meeting him warmly. Many other members also greeted each other.

As soon as the house was opened, tributes were paid to former President Pranab Mukherjee, noted classical singer Pandit Jasraj, current Lok Sabha member Vasant Kumar and 13 former members. The proceedings were then adjourned for one hour.