New Delhi: The Monsoon Session of Parliament which witnessed continuous pandemonium over Pegasus snooping row, farm laws and other issues, ended Wednesday – two days before the schedule. The Odisha MPs posed as many as 528 questions in both houses during the session.
During the session, as many as 20 Bills were passed in Lok Sabha including the Constitutional (One Hundred and Twenty Seventh Amendment) Bill, 2021 that will allow the states to make their own list of SEBCs. Out of the allotted 96 hours, Lok Sabha functioned only for 21 hours and 14 minutes. The Lower House recorded 22 per cent productivity during the session. The Odisha MPs posed as many as 299 starred/unstarred questions to the Union government on several state and national issues in Lok Sabha. In Rajya Sabha, the Odisha MPs posed 229 questions during the session.
While BJD MP Amar Patnaik sought the Union government’s response on Covid-19 vaccination for 12-18 year age group, Rajya Sabha member Sujeet Kumar requested the Centre to fill vacancies in tribunals in a time-bound manner. Kendrapara MP Anubhav Mohanty raised the issue of railway connectivity to Kendrapara.
Rajya Sabha MP Sasmit Patra reiterated the demand for ‘Special Focus State’ status to Odisha in the Upper House.
Likewise, BJP MP Basanta Panda raised several issues his constituency is grappling with during the session. He met several ministers and requested them to take steps for providing better education to the children in Kalahandi and also requested for establishment of skill centres in his constituency.
It is to be mentioned here that the Monsoon Session started July 19 since when the house witnessed multiple adjournments owing to the protests by opposition parties. The opposition parties continued their protest in the Parliament demanding discussion on Pegasus snooping row, farm bills and other issues. The Monsoon Session was scheduled to end August 13. However, it concluded two days before the schedule.