Page 6 - Rajya Sabha

Jio installed 5x more 5G radios than Airtel as of Nov: Telecom dept in RS

Airtel cites difference in tech after govt presents data in Rajya Sabha

Ahead of 2024, Private Member's UCC Bill poses a dilemma for Opposition

Many Upper House members have admitted that the treasury benches were seeking an opportunity and when the opposition count was low in the House then the bill was introduced

China's attempts at transgression, economy dominate Parliament proceedings

China's attempts at transgression at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Arunachal Pradesh, the government's strong desire to have a say in the appointments to the higher judiciary and heated debates on the state of the economy were some of the issues that dominated the Parliament proceedings this week. The Lok Sabha approved the Supplementary Demands for Grants to the tune of Rs 3.26 lakh crore, primarily to fund the higher subsidy bill on items such as fertilisers, food and cooking gas, besides ramping up capital expenditure in sectors such as railways and roads. The Lower House also passed two bills to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order to add the Narikoravan and Kurivikkaran communities to the list of Scheduled Tribes (ST) of Tamil Nadu and include the Hattee community of the Trans Giri area of Sirmour district in Himachal Pradesh to the ST list of the hill state. On Tuesday, as opposition members raised the issue of clashes between Indian and Chinese troops near ..

Coordinated efforts taken to contain Chinese loan apps: FM in Rajya Sabha

Government departments and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) are taking coordinated steps to check Chinese mobile apps offering easy loans and cheating people, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in Rajya Sabha on Friday. Responding to a zero-hour issue raised by a Trinamool Congress MP, she said action has been taken against apps that are cheating people by offering loans. The minister said she had in the last 6-7 months held several meetings with representatives of the central bank, her ministry officials and Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) on the issue of Chinese loan apps harassing and cheating people. "A lot of apps that have been badly misused have also been brought to the attention of MeiTY," she said. "So there is a coordinated effort to contain such apps. And also to take action against those who are misusing." Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeiTY) is the nodal ministry that issues orders for blocking apps considered prejudicial to the sovereign

Courts must work for a min 300 days a year to curb pending cases: Cong MP

Senior advocate and Congress Rajya Sabha member from Madhya Pradesh Vivek Tankha on Friday said courts should remain functional for at least 300 days a year to reduce the pendency of cases. Judges can go on leave but not courts, and only then can five crore pending cases be disposed of, he said. "Judges can go on leave but not courts. They should remain functional for at least 300 days in a year and then only the five crore cases pending in the courts will be disposed of. It should not happen that the entire court goes on vacation," he told reporters. "This was the practice during the British period when the judges went back home, so they declared a two-month holiday for courts like schools. If the court remains open then pending cases will be disposed of in a speedy manner. Currently, courts remain open for 200 days (per year). If a reform takes place then they will remain functional for at least 300 days," he added. Asked about the controversy over the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer film

Countries eager to sign FTAs with India: Piyush Goyal in Rajya Sabha

Countries across the world are looking at India as a trusted partner and want to sign free trade agreements with it after its emergence as a strong force in the world, Textile Minister Piyush Goyal said in the Rajya Sabha on Friday. He said talks are underway with the European Union, Gulf countries, Canada and the United Kingdom for free trade agreements (FTA) and the FTAs with two developed economies of the UAE and Australia will be enforced in this year alone. Replying to supplementaries during the Question Hour, the minister said it is true that in last few years, Bangladesh and Vietnam have made progress in the field of cotton textiles and garments. Bangladesh is still the least developed country (LDC) and will remain so till 2026 and because of that it gets duty free access in all world markets, he noted. Similarly, Vietnam has a FTA with the European Union due to which they get duty free access to the big market while our garments attract 9 to 10 percent duty in EU markets,

Govt needs to bring National Judicial Appointments Comission: Manoj Jha

Disagreeing with current collegium system, RJD member of parliament from Rajya Sabha Manoj Jha said that with the new changes, the government needs to bring the Judicial Appointments Commission bill

10 yrs of Nirbhaya case: DCW wants Parliament to discuss women's safety

Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal on Friday wrote to the Lok Sabha speaker and Rajya Sabha chairman urging them to suspend the day's business in both houses of Parliament to discuss the issue of women's safety on the 10th anniversary of the Nirbhaya gangrape incident. Crimes against women have reached an "epidemic proportion", she said, while highlighting that six rapes are reported in the national capital every day. "An eight month old baby and a 90-year-old woman have also been raped in Delhi!" she tweeted. Maliwal also highlighted the recent acid attack on a 17-year-old girl in west Delhi. "The problem of increasing crimes against women and girls has reached an epidemic proportion and governments are failing to take steps to counter it. Even the Nirbhaya Fund that was set up for providing relief and rehabilitation for women and girls has been reduced substantially," she said. "The increasing crimes against women and girls in a matter of great concern and needs to b

Nuclear plants are 'well protected' from all types of intrusions: Govt

The government on Thursday asserted that nuclear plants in the country are "well protected" from intrusions including from cyber attacks. Minister of State (Independent Charge), Department of Atomic Energy, Jitendra Singh also said the government has entered into Inter-Government Agreements with the Russian Federation for setting up Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project. He was asked about the steps being taken by the government to prevent cyber attacks on nuclear plants. "Certainly there was one such report last year following which we have put in place a mechanism whereby different levels of screening is done and monitoring is done. "I can assure this House that the nuclear plants are well protected from all kinds of intrusions including the cyber attacks," Singh said during Question Hour in Rajya Sabha. The minister said the government has entered into IGAs with Russian Federation for setting up Kudankulam Nuclear Power Projects comprising six units of 1000 MW each. Two units KKNP

Centre spent over Rs 3,723 cr on advertisements in 5 yrs, Rajya Sabha told

Government has spent a total of Rs 3,723.38 crore on advertisement of its policies and programmes over the past five years through the Central Bureau of Communication, Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday. In a written reply, Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said the expenditure on advertisements and publicity has not increased over the past five years. According to the data shared by the government, Rs 1,220.89 crore was spent on advertisements in 2017-18 while an expenditure of Rs 1,106.88 crore was incurred in 2018-19, which was ahead of the general elections of 2019. The government spent Rs 627.67 crore in 2019-20; Rs 349.09 crore in 2020-21 and Rs 264.78 crore in 2021-22, Thakur said. In the current financial year, the government has spent Rs 154.07 crore on advertisements till December 9, he said. As per the above data, expenditure on advertisement and publicity has not increased in the last few years, Thakur said in response to a question by Congress memb

Over 22,000 second appeals, complaints pending with CIC: Govt tells RS

Over 22,000 second appeals and complaints were pending with the Central Information Commission as on December 5, 2022, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday. The CIC is mandated to deal with second appeals and complaints filed by RTI applicants in case they are aggrieved with the responses provided to them by government departments. Of the total pendency of 22,442, 19,178 were second appeals and 3,264 complaints, Union Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said in reply to a written question. To a question on whether the government was aware of cases where personal information of some RTI applicants have been made public, the minister said the Centre has from time to time issued guidelines or office memorandums "bringing to notice of all ministries/departments of government of India that personal information of an RTI applicant should not be disclosed". Section 8(1) (j) of the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005 provides that it is not obligatory for public informatio

Received 6 mn complaints on grievance redress system in 3 years: Centre

Govt said public grievances were received against various states and Union territories between 2020 and November this year

Parliament winter session: Rajya Sabha adjourned twice amid uproar

Seven Opposition members had given notices to the chairman on various issues, but were not allowed

No info from state govts about deadlock between VCs, chancellors: Centre

The Centre has not received any information from state governments about deadlocks between university vice-chancellors and chancellors, Rajya Sabha was informed on Wednesday. Minister of State for Education Subhas Sarkar also denied that the government is considering to set up a commission for ease of selection of qualified and skilled persons for appointment as vice-chancellors. "The University Grants Commission (UGC) has framed UGC (Minimum Qualifications for Appointment of Teachers and other Academic Staff in Universities and Colleges and other Measures for the Maintenance of Standards in Higher Education) Regulations, 2018, notified in the Gazette of India on 18th July, 2018," he said. The minister was responding to questions from Congress MP Pramod Tiwari on whether there is a deadlock between vice-chancellors and chancellors of universities in states and if the government is formulating any policy in this regard. "This ministry has not received any reference from the state .

RS okays bill to include Gond community in ST category in parts of UP

The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday passed a bill that seeks to include the Gond community in the Scheduled Tribes category in parts of Uttar Pradesh. The Rajya Sabha passed by a voice vote the Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Orders (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022, with some amendments. The bill was introduced by Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda on Tuesday. Replying to the discussion on the bill, Munda said the issue has been pending since 1980s and blamed the then Congress-led government for ignoring the plight of the community and denying them their constitutional rights through Schedule Tribes category. Munda also moved amendments in the bill, which will again go to the Lok Sabha for its nod. The bill was earlier passed by the Lok Sabha in April this year. The bill seeks to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) (Uttar Pradesh) Order, 1967 (ST Order) and the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 (SC Order) with respect to its application to Uttar Pradesh

Ensure no gap in essentials supply to troops in high altitudes: Par panel

There should not be any "gap" in supply of clothing, equipment, ration and provisioning of accommodation for soldiers engaged in safeguarding the country's borders under difficult weather conditions in high-altitude regions, a high-level parliamentary panel said on Wednesday. In its 55th report tabled in Lok Sabha, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) pointed out inordinate delays in procurement of winter clothing for soldiers in high-altitude areas as well as implementation of the project for improving their housing conditions. It also recommended urgent revamp of the approach towards procurement of high-altitude clothing, equipment, ration and housing facilities for the troops deployed in those regions. Temperatures in some of the forward locations including in Ladakh drop up to minus 40 degree celsius during harsh winter months. The PAC's report on 'Provisioning, procurement and issue of High Altitude Clothing, Equipment, Ration and Housing' noted that the audit found instances o

Rajya Sabha mourns death of former MPs Yoginder K Alagh and R C Singh

The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday mourned the death of its former member Yoginder K Alagh and R C Singh with MPs standing in silence in their places as a mark of respect. When the House met for the day, Deputy Chairman Harivansh informed that Alagh passed away on December 6 at the age of 83 years. Alagh, who taught economics during his lifetime, served as a member of the erstwhile Planning Commission and was vice chancellor of JNU. He represented the state of Gujarat in the Upper House from November 1996 to April 2000. "In the passing away of Alagh the country has lost an eminent economist and an able Parliamentarian," he said. An agriculturalist and social worker Singh, who was an MP of Rajya Sabha from June 2008 to April 2012, died on December 10 at the age of 78 years. "In the passing away of Singh, the country has lost a veteran trade unionist and an able parliamentarian," he said. MPs stood in their places in silence as a mark of respect to the memory of the departed.

Bill to include Gonds in ST category in UP introduced in Rajya Sabha

The Rajya Sabha on Tuesday took up a bill that seeks to include the Gond community in the Scheduled Tribes category in parts of Uttar Pradesh. Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda introduced the motion for consideration and passage of the bill when the Upper House reassembled at 2 pm post lunch break. The Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Orders (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022 passed by the Lok Sabha in April this year. The bill seeks to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) (Uttar Pradesh) Order, 1967 (ST Order) and the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 (SC Order) with respect to its application to Uttar Pradesh. It amends the Scheduled Castes order to exclude the Gond community as a Scheduled Caste in four districts of Uttar Pradesh: Chandauli, Kushinagar, Sant Kabir Nagar, and Sant Ravidas Nagar. It amends the ST order to recognise the Gond community as a Scheduled Tribe in these four districts. Pramod Tiwari of the Congress supported the bill but

'3,000 raids on opposition leaders', says AAP's Sanjay Singh in RS

He alleged that the government agencies were deliberately harassing the opposition

A new legislation for women's representation: The need of the hour

Bifurcating constituencies into two separate sections - each to be represented by a man and a woman respectively - can be accomplished within a few months