Bhubaneswar: The duration of the business hour of the Odisha Assembly during the forthcoming monsoon session has been increased by an hour each day, Speaker B K Arukha said Wednesday.
This was decided at an all-party meeting ahead of the monsoon session which will commence on July 2 and continue till August 4.
“The House will now function for six hours daily. The post lunch session of the Assembly will be held from 4 pm to 7 pm,” the Speaker told reporters after the meeting.
Earlier, it used to be held till 6 pm.
The session will have 24 working days and will continue till August 4.
Among them, two days have been marked for private members’ business.
Finance Minister Niranjan Pujari is scheduled to present the state budget for the year 2022-23 on the first day of the session.
Arukha said the House will be conducted with strict adherence to COVID protocols.
The Opposition BJP and Congress MLAs have demanded that journalists be allowed to enter the assembly and the physical presence of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in the House during discussions.
PTI