A day after Lok Sabha passed two contentious agri bills by voice vote, the fifth day of the monsoon session of the Parliament is likely to see discussion and passing of Indian Institutes of Information Technology Laws Bill and Indian Medicine Central Council Bill, among others.
The session is expected to continue as scheduled despite Ministers Nitin Gadkari and Prahlad Patel testing positive for coronavirus (COVID-19) after 2-3 days of attending the House.
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Here are the latest updates:
BJP MP from Punjab Shwait Malik asks the Congress to not politicise COVID-19 efforts. He says that the PMCARES funds are being used wisely, and for coronavirus response.
AITC MP from West Bengal Dinesh Trivedi says that he fully supports the wage cuts, but asks the ruling party to include the Opposition in the decision making process.
Suspend Central Vista project until pandemic is over, says Congress MP
Congress MP from Maharashtra Rajeev Satav says that he fully supports the Bill and is willing to work for Re.1 if that would aid COVID-19 response.
However, he says that the attempt to suspend MPLAD is wrong, and criticises the government's handling of the economy. He says that there is no accountability for PMCARES, and many other programs. He calls for MPLAD to be reinstated because it benefits the people on the ground.
He also asks that the Central Vista project be suspended until the COVID-19 fight is done with.
The Indian Medicine Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2020 and the Homoeopathy Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2020 passed by voice vote.
Next in consideration: Salaries and Allowances of Ministers (Amendment) Bill, 2020.
Minister Kishen Reddy moves the motion for discussion on the Bill, on behalf of Home Minister Amit Shah. BJP's Bhupendar Yadav suggests that this Bill's discussion be combined with that of Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament (Amendment) Bill, 2020. The House agrees and Mr. Reddy moves the motion.
The Bills call for a 30% reduction in salaries of MPs and 30% reduction in the sumptuary allowance of Ministers to aid in COVID-19 response.
Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan thanks the members for their suggestions and concerns. Addressing the concerns regarding the ordinance route, Dr. Vardhan says there is nothing abnormal about this choice as many previous governments have used this option as well.
The Minister objects to the use of the term "quackery" in reference to certain ancient Indian medical system. He says that yoga and naturopathy need a separate national medical commission, and adds that the National Medical Commission for modern medicine will be functional soon.
BJP MP Dr. Vikas Mahatme from Maharashtra begins by congratulating Ms. Vandana Chavan for her role as acting Chair. He suggests that the name of the position should be changed from Chairman to Chairperson to make it gender neutral.
He says the ordinance was necessary to ensure the registration of the council was done in a proper manner.
AAP MP from Delhi Sanjay Singh says that the amount set aside for homoeopathy in the AYUSH ministry budget is very small.
Congress MP from Karnataka L. Hanumanthaiah too terms the government as an "ordinance government". He names the different ordinances that were brought in by the government previously to support his statement. "What is the necessity of so many ordinances even when the Parliament is running?" he asks.
He says that the current amendments proposed are stop-gap measures.
Almost every member raises the point that it is inappropriate to choose the ordinance route repeatedly.
RJD MP Prof. Manoj Kumar from Bihar too echoes this sentiment. This not a government, this is an ordinance factory, he says.
The MP asks that the Bill be made balanced. He says though the Prime Minister and ruling party keeps using the phrase cooperative federalism, but he has not seen any inkling of that so far. He asks the Health Minister to rectify that. He adds that there are many fake medicines being sold in markets in the name of Indian medicine, and that he requests the government to find a way to address that as well.
SP MP from Ram Gopal Yadav from Uttar Pradesh says that the current amendments have limited scope, and are just to extend the tenure of the Board of Governors. He says there are many diseases for which there is no cure in allopathy, but there is a cure in ayurveda. He supports the Bill.
DMK MP from Tamil Nadu Tiruchi Siva terms the Bill as another attempt by the government to dilute the principle of federalism. He points out that there is no representation of elected members of State Medical Councils in the advisory council.
Ordinance route to be used only in case of emergency, says Prasanna Acharya
"Homoeopathy is an old Indian system of medicine and it is accessible to the poor. So we need to make it robust," says BJP MP Prasanna Acharya from Odisha.
"My contention isthat the ordinance should be brought in only during an extraordinary situation. We have a Parliament, why do we need an ordinance," he asks. He says he and his party supports the Bill, but there is not clear demarcation of powers and functions, and that needs to be addressed.
The members are discussing both Indian Medicine Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2020 and Homoeopathy Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2020 together.
NCP MP Vandan Chavan is in the Chair.
AITC MP from West Bengal Dr. Santanu Sen asks what can be expected from a government that says that drinking cow urine can cure disease. He accuses the government of promoting quackery and private colleges.
BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh Dr. Sudhanshu Trivedi speaks on the Bill. He says that one of the challenges before the government was to decide how to uphold the quality of teaching and practising homoeopathy. He says that a national eligibility test has been set up for this.
"Some say that there is no scientific proof for homoeopathic medicines effectiveness. Homoeopathy is a strain of medicine that focusses not just on the disease but also the patient. The science behind this is not visible to us," he says.
"For instance, two ways of combating COVID-19 are by vaccine and by boosting immunity. Methods to boost immunity are available only in Indian medicine, and not by Western medicine," he says. It is regrettable that we did not explore Indian medicine in depth earlier, says Dr. Trivedi. He adds that the only way to become a world leader is by being a pioneer, and not a follower. He cites the time and money China has poured into exploration of their traditional medicine as an example.
Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan moves the motion to take up Homoeopathy Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2020. The Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha in June 2019.
MP K.K. Ragesh registers his protest against the "ordinance raj".
INC MP Ripun Bora said that the autonomy of the Homeopathy Council, and briefly describes the history of the Council. He said the government has a history of taking away autonomy (cites J&K as an example) of institutes and organisations.
DMK MP from Tamil Nadu Tiruchi Siva says that there is unequal representation of States in Central government jobs. He asks that 90% representation be given for residents of the States.
Other points raised include digitisation of land rights, concern on privatisation of ordinance factories, rights of pensioners, the uneven implementation of Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan.
BJD MP from Odisha Muzibulla Khan raises the issue of revisiting census figures in Odisha as he suspects that figures related to the minority population is inaccurate.
AIAMK MP from Tamil Nadu M. Thambidurai requests the Centre to release the pending Custom Milled Rice subsidy amount of over 5,445 crore to the State. He details the break-up of the amount, and says that the State government is a farmer-friendly government.
Congress MP from Punjab Shamsher Singh Dullo raises the issue of illicit liquor in the State and requests the Centre to intervene and investigate the illicit liquor mafia. He requests that compensation be provided for people affected by this.
Rajya Sabha resumes.
Papers laid on the table. Chairman reminds the House of safety guidelines. He asks the members to avoid meeting him in his chamber in person, and instead to write to him their requests. Slips are not allowed in the the examination halls, but they are allowed here, says Chairman Venkaiah Naidu, prompting laughter.
Dr. Vinay Sahasrabuddhe tests COVID positive
BJP MP from Maharashtra Dr. Vinay Sahasrabuddhe said that he has tested positive for COVID-19. He shared the news on Twitter.
The MP said that he had tested negative on September 11, but after he suffered from mild fever and headache, he got himself examined and retested. He said that he is being treated for the virus and appealed those who interacted with him to consult a doctor.
The Upper House has been adjourned till 9.30 a.m following obituary reference to Karnataka MP Ashok Gasti.
Ashok Gasti | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Gasti, who was BJP Rajya Sabha member from Raichur, succumbed to COVID-19 at a private hospital in Bengaluru on Thursday night. He was critically ill with multi-organ failure and was on life support system in the intensive care unit.
Covering Parliament during a pandemic
Sobhana K. Nair, who is covering the proceedings from the Parliament House, writes:
What strikes you the most when you enter Parliament now is emptiness. There are no milling crowds, no chatter, and no reporters tailing parliamentarians.
Strict rules have been put in place to ensure safety. To make sure that there are no big crowds, the number of reporters has been severely limited by both Houses of Parliament. The list of news organisations that are allowed inside the Parliament premises has been trimmed. Many regional and smaller organisations are barred. On any given day, there are not more than 35 reporters allowed inside the premises. The Rajya Sabha has come up with a roster allocating different dates to each organisation. On the days one doesn’t figure in the list, one has no choice but to watch the live transmission from miles away. No photographers, except from the news agency PTI, have been provided access. No television cameras are allowed except Doordarshan, ANI, Rajya Sabha TV, and Lok Sabha TV. And these camerapersons too are allowed only up to a certain point.
Bills for Consideration and Passing
- Indian Medicine Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2020
- Salaries and Allowances of Ministers (Amendment) Bill, 2020
- Homoeopathy Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2020
- Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament (Amendment) Bill, 2020
- Indian Institutes of Information Technology Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2020
Bill for Introduction
- Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020
Bills for consideration and passing
- Bilateral Netting of Qualified Financial Contracts Bill, 2020
- Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2020
- Factoring Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2020