Preparations on for PM Narendra Modi's visit to Patna on July 12

PATNA: Hectic preparations are on to make the one-day visit of PM Narendra Modi to Patna on July 12 a grand success, as a part of the centenary celebration of the state legislature building. It will also mark the conclusion of the yearlong centenary celebration.
During his visit, PM Modi will inaugurate the massive Centenary Memorial Pillar on the sprawling lawn of the assembly building -- precisely in front of its portico and towering over it. He will also lay the foundation stone for the construction of the state assembly museum, sources said. The PM will also address the function and the joint session of the state legislature in the central hall, the assembly sources said.
Earlier, President Ram Nath Kovind had inaugurated the one-year centenary celebration of the state legislature building. He had laid the foundation stone for the construction of the Centenary Memorial Pillar, besides planting a sapling of the Bodhi Tree brought from Bodh Gaya. Later, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla had also participated in a separate function as part of the centenary celebration.
Marking the centenary celebration, assembly Speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha, at his level, has tried to introduce a “new tradition” of playing the national song and the national anthem at the beginning and end of the House sessions. Besides, Sinha has also mooted the construction of a guesthouse for the past and present MLAs at Patna.
However, the play of the national song ‘Vande Mataram’ created its own share of controversy in the House, as the five AIMIM members earlier and a Muslim RJD member during the recently concluded monsoon session did not stand up during its singing on the floor of the House, nor did they sing it.
Sinha’s bid to have a separate room for the lawmakers in the district collectorates and at the block headquarters has also met with some resistance at the level of the state government, as it amounted to overt impinging of the legislature on the executive, observers felt.