NEW DELHI:
Budget session of Parliament is expected to start from the 2nd week of July amid indications that the Union Budget 2014-15 could be presented by July 11.
Parliamentary affairs minister M Venkaiah Naidu told reporters that plans are afoot to start the Budget session in the second week of July. The Cabinet will decide the dates, he said. Naidu also said that the deputy speaker will also elected in budget session.
"That is the system", remarked Naidu when asked whether the practice of presentation of Rail Budget, economic survey and General budget in the first week of the Budget session will be followed this time.
The vote-on-account budget approved by the previous Parliament ends on July 31 and a new budget has to be in place before that date.
Naidu steered clear of questions on the issue of Leader of Opposition status to Congress saying the matter is with the Speaker. "The matter is with the Speaker. I do not want to say anything about it", he said.
He said that the election of deputy speaker will take place during the Budget session.
The ordinances promulgated recently in the wake of the division of Andhra Pradesh and the one facilitating the appointment of former TRAI chief Nripendra Misra as Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister will be taken up during the Budget session.
Naidu said the just-concluded session was fruitful. He appealed to the opposition to cooperate with the government inside and outside Parliament after Prime Minister's assurance that his government will not go by numbers but would take everyone along. He said the "just and meaningful" demands of the opposition will be given due consideration. 60 bills are pending in the Rajya Sabha.
The government also dubbed as "unfair" the Congress comment that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's first speech in Parliament had "lack of content" and was "repeat of rhetoric."
"It is an unfair comment. President's address is a broad statement of intent and detailed action plan is (reflected) through various budgetary provisions. "You cannot expect wonders in one week or ten days...(the talk of) prices rising, temperatures rising...really sad," Naidu said.
On Wednesday, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala had said that the Prime Minister should have unveiled the road map for delivering on promises made in the President's Address to Parliament. "Instead of making promises, time has now come for concretised action...The reply of the Prime Minister could have had far more content and a plan and a roadmap for delivery of the promises that the President had made in his Address to the Joint Sitting of Parliament," he had said.
Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com