Parliament Budget Session: Lok Sabha MPs seek education loan waiver for Ukraine returnees

After removal of Article 370 in J&K, 890 Central laws have become applicable there. What was denied to people of J&K over 70 years will be given to them. It has enabled that which Dr. Ambedkar gave for the rest of the country for SC/ST is now available for people of J&K, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in Lok Sabha.

1,198 startups have been registered in J&K. More than 200 startups funded till now. Rs 143 crores given to MSME units in J&K under Emergency Credit Guarantee Scheme during COVID19 pandemic, she said in Lok Sabha during a discussion on Budget of UT of J&K for 2022-23.

As the Budget session resumed after a 30-day recess, Naidu gave an account of the work done by the eight stanfing committees of Rajya Sabha.

Referring to the situation in Ukraine, Naidu said that evacuation of students from the war-hit country was a challenging task and complimented the Centre and state governments for putting in praiseworthy efforts in this regard.

Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday expressed concern over the low attendance of members in the Parliamentary standing committee meetings and also called for a productive second part of the Budget session.

The government is pursuing a multi-pronged strategy to eliminate child labour and has taken comprehensive measures which include legislative action, rehabilitation strategy and providing right to free education, Union Labour Minister Bhupender Yadav said on Monday. Yadav also said that the government is not maintaining centrally data of school-going children, who are involved as labourers with their families. "The government is pursuing a multi-pronged strategy to eliminate child labour and has taken comprehensive measures which include legislative measures, rehabilitation strategy, providing right of free education and general socio-economic development so as to eliminate incidence of child labour," he said in the Lok Sabha during the Question Hour. Giving details about statutory and legislative measures, rehabilitation strategy and education, Yadav said the government has enacted the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016 which came into force on September 1, 2016 and the amendment provides stricter punishment for employers for violation of the Act and made the offence as cognisable. Framing of Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Central Rules, framing of model state action plan enumerating action points to be taken by respective state governments and circulation of the same to chief secretaries of all states, implementation of the National Child Labour Project scheme for rehabilitation of child labour, which has now been subsumed under the Samagara Shiksha Abhiyan Scheme, are some of the other measures, he added.

Amid skyrocketing oil prices, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday said the government will take all required measures in the coming months to ensure that consumers get relief from high fuel prices. Replying during the Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha, the Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas also shared that a proposal to bring petroleum products under the Goods and Services Tax was taken up by the GST Council but it "did not find favour". India relies on overseas purchases to meet about 85 per cent of its oil requirement, making it one of the most vulnerable in Asia to higher oil prices. Puri was responding to senior Congress leader Anand Sharma, who said it was agreed upon by the government and the opposition that petroleum products will be eventually brought under GST at the time of its introduction, and sought to know the progress been made in this regard. "States which are acquiring high revenue from the sale of petrol and petroleum products and if I may also add liquor are normally reluctant to reduce their revenue from these two sources," said the Petroleum Minister. However, Puri said "the government will in the coming months also take whatever measures we have to, to make sure that our consumer gets relief to the extent we can".

Rajya Sabha chairman M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said ultraviolet C-band radiation equipment has been installed in chambers of the House to contain the spread of coronavirus. "I am happy to inform you all that the secretariat has recently installed another safety measure in the chambers of this august House to contain the spread of coronavirus. Equipment has been installed to contain the spread of virus through ultraviolet C-band radiation which is very effective in killing the virus," he said. The technology has been developed by CSIR-CSIO. 

Over Rs 1.41 lakh crore has been released by the Centre to the Bihar government as proceeds of central taxes and duties during 2020-21 and 2021-22 following recommendations of the 15th Finance Commission, the Lok Sabha was informed on Monday. Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said more than Rs 45,000 crore has also been released to Bihar by the central government as grant for rural development, health sector, state disaster response fund among others. "Based on the recommendations of the 15th Finance Commission (XV-FC), Rs 59,861.41 crore from net proceeds of Central Taxes and Duties during 2020-21 and Rs 81,789.32 crore in 2021-22 has been released to Bihar," he told the Lok Sabha during the Question Hour. In addition, he said, the 15th Finance Commission has also recommended transfer of various types of funds to states, including Bihar, depending upon their eligibility determined by the commission. Funds recommended for transfer to the state of Bihar by the 15th Finance Commission include Rs 8,727 crore grant for Rural Local Bodies, Rs 3,175 crore for Urban Local bodies and Rs 2,548 crore for state disaster response fund. "Besides grants, borrowings of Rs 27,285 crore in 2020-21 and Rs 28,489 crore in 2021-22 was also allowed to Bihar," he said.

Airline industry that suffered heavy losses during the Covid pandemic is returning to pre-Covid levels, and has recorded a traffic of 3.8 lakh passengers per day, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia informed the Rajya Sabha on Monday. Replying to supplementaries during Question hour, the minister said the civil aviation sector is on its way back to recovery and is roughly about 5-6 per cent off from pre-Covid levels. "I am pleased to report to the house that pre-Covid our maximum number of passengers in India per day was about four lakh and we reached a level of 3.83 lakh per day in the month of December," Scindia said. "We are looking at resuscitation and with that we are hopeful that we will see a rebound in terms of employment levels," he said.

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday informed the Rajya Sabha that nine states, including Maharashtra and Kerala, have not reduced VAT on petrol and diesel. The Petroleum and Natural Gas minister also informed the house that fuel prices have gone up by over 50 per cent in many countries but have remained stable and risen  by a mere 5 per cent in India during the pandemic. "All elected representatives should be rejoicing at the fact that the prices of petrol paid by the consumer have remained steady during the period from April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021," he told the house.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday presented a Rs 1.42 lakh crore budget for the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir for the year 2022-23 in the Lok Sabha, amid demands from the opposition that it be given adequate time for studying the proposals. Sitharaman also presented the supplementary demands for the year 2021-22 totalling Rs 18,860.32 crore for the Union Territory and moved a motion seeking suspension of certain rules to allow the House to take up the discussion on the same day. Congress member Manish Tewari and RSP member N K Premachandran objected to the motion moved by Sitharaman, contending that Rule 205 formed part of the basic rules of procedure and cannot be waived. "Some rules are beyond the amending powers of the House," Tewari, a Congress member from Anandpur Sahib, said, arguing that the members required time to study the Budget proposals made by the government for Jammu and Kashmir. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal said the discussion will take place after two hours.

Left and TMC members in the Rajya Sabha on Monday tried to raise the issue of lowering of interest rate on employees' provident fund deposits. However, Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu did not permit them, saying they should first give a notice to raise the matter. Soon after the House mourned the demise of four former members and tabling of listed papers and reports, CPI member Binoy Viswam, and some TMC members wanted to raise the issue related to the proposal to lower the interest rate to a four-decade low of 8.1 per cent for fiscal 2021-22 from 8.5 per cent in the previous year. Naidu did not permit them to raise the matter during the Zero Hour. "You write to me. Send a request," he said. The House observed silence for Nabin Chandra Buragohain, Rahul Bajaj, D P Chattopadhyaya, and Yadlapati Venkat Rao, who passed away recently.

Parliamentarians on Monday demanded that the government formulate a policy to allow students evacuated from war-torn Ukraine to complete their medical education in universities in India. Raising the issue during the Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha, Congress member Rajmohan Unnithan (Kasargod) claimed that thousands of students from Kerala were still stranded in Sumy in Ukraine and demanded that the government take urgent steps to bring them to safety. Congress member Abdul Khaleque said the government should have taken steps earlier to evacuate students from Ukraine and not have waited till the hostilities broke out. "Indian students had to reach countries neighbouring Ukraine on their own. In reality, this cannot be termed as evacuation as is being claimed by the government," Khaleque, a member from Barpeta in Assam, said. YSRCP members P V Midhun Reddy and M Sreenivasulu Reddy demanded that the government take steps to relocate students rescued from Ukraine in medical colleges in India to allow them to complete their studies. Reddy demanded that the government open more medical colleges to ensure that students can complete their education within the country. Congress member Kodikunnil Suresh wanted the government to waive off education loans taken by students pursuing education in Ukraine by invoking the clause of act of war to save them from falling in a debt trap. Students rescued from Ukraine face an uncertain future due to their inability to complete their education and also run the risk of falling into a debt trap as they may find it difficult to repay education loans, he said. He also demanded that the government extend specialised help to students to overcome the mental trauma faced in the war zone. Suresh also suggested to the government to set up a student welfare wing in every embassy as a policy intervention to help students in times of crisis.

Several Rajya Sabha MPs on Monday raised issues related to Indian students evacuated from war-hit Ukraine, and asked the government to take steps to help them complete their studies. On the first day of the second part of Budget Session, Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu said a large number of Indian students in Ukraine needed to be evacuated in the context of the situation there.  "This was a very challenging task. The Government of India rose to the occasion by evacuating Indian students as well as some students of other nationalities. These efforts are praiseworthy," he said.  Naidu also informed members that the minister concerned will make a statement on the issue, and members can seek clarification. Raising the issue during the Zero Hour, Kanakamedala Ravindra Kumar (TDP) noted that many students from India had gone for medical education in Ukraine. He said though safety and security of the students have been ensured, their future is at stake and urged the government to take necessary steps to safeguard their future. K C Venugopal (Cong) said students who have returned from Ukraine are in a very difficult situation and their families are also concerned about their future. Noting that the education of these students has come to the standstill, he said the government needs to clarify what steps it will take. Amar Patnaik (BJD) suggested that seats in private and government medical colleges should be increased by two to five per cent so that education of the students who returned from Ukraine is not affected. Santanu Sen (TMC) said while the government has taken the responsibility to complete the internship of the students after they pass the eligibilty test, some special steps are required to accommodate students who were in the first, second and third years of their studies, in India.

Around 21.5 million people, involved in the tourism industry, have lost their jobs due to the three waves of COVID-19 that first hit the country in early 2020, Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy said on Monday. Reddy said tourist arrivals in the country were down by 93 per cent during the first wave of COVID-19 outbreak, 79 per cent in the second wave and 64 per cent during the third wave. "We have conducted a study on the impact of the pandemic on tourism. As per the study, there were 14.5 million job losses during the first wave, 5.2 million job losses in the second wave and 1.8 million job losses in the third wave," he said in Lok Sabha during Question Hour.

Rajya Sabha member Sonal Mansingh on Monday flayed the huge discounts that were earlier being offered by liquor vendors in the city, and said there was a need to curb policies that cause pain to society. During the Zero Hour, Mansingh said, "I urge the government to take cognisance of this issue so that such policies which cause pain to society could be curbed." Referring to the new excise policy of the Delhi Government and massive discounts that were offered on liquor, she said, "Public opposed it and staged protests at many places. But the Delhi Government remained unfazed. When the Delhi High Court took cognisance of this scheme, this scheme was closed in hurry". 

The government on Monday sought Parliament nod for net additional spending of over Rs 1.07 lakh crore in the third batch of supplementary demands for current fiscal year. As per the third batch of supplementary demands for grants tabled in the Lok Sabha, approval is being sought for gross additional expenditure of over Rs 1.58 lakh crore. Of this, proposals involving net cash outgo aggregate to over Rs 1.07 lakh crore and gross additional expenditure, matched by savings of ministries/departments or by enhanced receipts aggregates to over Rs 50,946 crore.

The Lok Sabha has been adjourned to 2 pm. Today is the first day of the second part of the Budget Session. 

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said, “Operation Ganga took place under PM Modi’s leadership Now when we have brought them here, the government will take care of the arrangements to make them doctors. This is the time to take them out of shock and take care of them. We are committed towards them.”

Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu said that eight Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committees (DRSCs) of Rajya Sabha have held a total of 21 meetings for a total duration of 73 hours 33 minutes & examined the Demands for Grants of 18 Ministries encompassing 32 Departments. 3 committees met for an avg duration of over 4 hrs per meeting. Committee on Education reported highest average duration of 4 hours 48 min per meeting, followed by the one on Personnel and Public Grievances with 4 hrs 39 min & Committee on Commerce with 4 hrs 8 min. However, there has been a decline in the average attendance of meetings this year from that of last year. I understand that the recent assembly elections were a major factor that pulled down the attendance: Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu

As the Lok Sabha met on the first day of the second part of the Budget Session, BJP-led NDA MPs chanted 'Modi, Modi' inside the House. The House is meeting first time after the BJP's mega win in the Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh and three other states.

I will miss this House.Punjab has given me huge responsibility. But I promise people of Sangrur that a bold voice will echo in the House soon. I thank people who trusted & voted for their son: Punjab CM designate Bhagwant Mann as he arrives to resign from membership of Parliament

Congress, CPI(M), RSP, YSRCP have given Adjournment motion Notice in Lok Sabha and demanded a discussion over the education of Indian students evacuated from Ukraine due to conflict with Russia.

Congress MP Manickam Tagore gives Adjournment Motion Notice in Lok Sabha, to discuss the interest rate cuts in provident fund deposits.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will table the general budget for Jammu and Kashmir today in the Lok Sabha. There will be a discussion and voting to decide the general budget of Jammu and Kashmir.

Tribal Affairs Minister, Arjun Munda is reported to move The Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment) Bill, 2022 in Lok Sabha today. The bill seeks to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950 for inclusion of certain communities in the list of STs from Tripura.

Meeting of the Business Advisory Committee for both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha at 10 AM today. The second part of the Budget Session will resume today after 30 days recess.

Punjab CM-designate Bhagwant Mann on Monday said he will submit his resignation as a member of Parliament. He is a two-time Lok Sabha MP from Sangrur parliamentary constituency in the state. "I will resign as Sangrur MP after going to Delhi today. The people of Sangrur have showered me with so much love for many years, many thanks for this. Now I have got an opportunity to serve the whole of Punjab. I promise to the people of Sangrur that in a few months, their voice will be heard again in the Lok Sabha," Mann said in a tweet in Punjabi. The 48-year-old AAP leader will be sworn in as the chief minister of Punjab on March 16. 

Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi gives Zero Hour Submission in Rajya Sabha to discuss the depreciating value of the Indian Rupee.

Congress MP Manish Tewari gives Adjournment Motion Notice in Lok Sabha to discuss Russia Ukraine crisis and the plight & future of Indian students evacuated from Ukraine.

CPI Rajya Sabha MP Binoy Viswam has given Suspension of Business Notice under rule 267 to discuss the decision of slashing EPFO interest rate to 8.1% from 8.5%, a 43 year low.

AAP MP Sanjay Singh has given Zero hour notice in Rajya Sabha regarding not changing the original building of Mahatma Gandhi in Sabarmati Ashram, Ahmedabad

The Budget Session resumes after a 30-day recess during which the Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committees (DRSCs) examined the Demands for Grants of various ministries and departments. Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu is likely to give an account of the working of the eight DRSCs of the Rajya Sabha during the recess in the House on Monday.

The House will have four days for Private Members' Business and the Question Hour will continue to be for an hour, while the Zero Hour, which was curtailed to half-an-hour during the first part of the session, will now be for an hour per sitting, the Rajya Sabha officials said.

Meanwhile, the Rajya Sabha will get 19 hours of additional time for business over the earlier schedule. The House will sit from 11 am till 6 pm with a one-hour lunch break during the 19 scheduled sittings. With this increase in the sitting time of one hour per sitting, the Upper House will get 64 hours and 30 minutes for transacting the government's legislative business and taking up the issues of public importance during the second part of the session, according to an official statement.

Although the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha will have simultaneous sittings in the second part, the Houses will use their respective chambers and galleries for the members to the seat.

With the Covid-19 situation easing out considerably, both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha will have simultaneous sittings from 11 am, instead of the two separate shifts during the first part of the Budget Session from January 29 to February 11. While the Rajya Sabha functioned from 10 am to 3 pm, the Lok Sabha from 4 pm to 9 pm during the first part. The Budget Session started on January 31 with the President's address to a joint sitting of both Houses and the Union Budget was presented on February 1.

Earlier on Sunday, Congress working president Sonia Gandhi presided over a meeting of the party's Parliamentary strategy group. Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said that Congress will raise a number of issues, including inflation, unemployment and evacuation of the students from Ukraine. "We held a discussion on the issues to be raised in the upcoming Parliament session. We will try to raise the issues of inflation, unemployment, MSP for farmers and medical students returning from Ukraine," Kharge told ANI.