Chairman of Rajya Sabha Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu has suggested to all the concerned to ensure submission of reports on Demands for Grants of various Ministries by the Department Related Standing Committees (DRSCs) well before the Budget is approved by the Parliament. Elaborating on this, he said submission of such reports later would not give time for the Government to consider the recommendations made by DRSCs in respect of various ministries. Shri Naidu spoke on the need for timely submission of reports at a meeting of leaders of various parties and groups in Rajya Sabha, at his residence, today on the occasion of the Budget Session that commenced today.The Chairman urged the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs to talk to all concerned including Chairmen of various Committees regarding timely submission of reports on Demands for Grants and further said that he would also speak to the Lok Sabha Speaker, Shri Om Birla in this regard. The leaders who attended the meeting have welcomed the suggestion of Shri Naidu.Shri Naidu reminded the leaders of the good work done by the Rajya Sabha during the last two Sessions in terms of the productivity and quality of debates and urged them to ensure the same positive momentum during the Budget Session. He said that Budget Session offers ample opportunities to raise and discuss all issues of wider public concern during the long debates on the Motion of Thanks to the President for his Address at the Joint Session and the Budget discussion. He also advised leaders to ensure that Members belonging to respective parties come prepared to make effective contribution to the debates in the House.
Voicing his concern over inadequate attendance during the proceedings of the House and in the meetings of various committees, Shri Naidu urged the leaders of various parties to ensure attendance by their Members. He noted that a situation of lack of quorum should not arise as it reflects poorly on the functioning of legislatures.While assuring cooperation of the Opposition in transacting legislative business, Shri Azad said that Government should be willing to accommodate their concerns and enable various issues of public concern to be discussed in the House. Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Shri Prahlad Joshi said that Government is always willing to discuss any issue as decided by the Chairman.Those who attended the meeting include; Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha Shri Harivansh, Leader of the House Shri Thawar Chand Gehlot, Leader of Opposition Shri Ghulam Nabi Azad, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Shri Prahlad Joshi, External Affairs Minister Shri Jai Shankar, I&B Minister Shri Prakash Javadekar, Minister of Railways Shri Piyush Goyal, Shri Ram Gopal Yadav (SP), Shri Derek O` Brien (TMC), Shri Sanjay Rout (Shiv Sena), Shri Tiruchi Siva (DMK), Shri Prasanna Acharya (BJD), Shri R.C.P. Singh (JDU), Shri Balvinder Bhundar(SAD), Dr. K. Keshava Rao (TRS), Shri T.K. Radhakrishnan(CPM), Shri Binoy Vishwom (CPI), Shri Vaiko (MDMK) and Shri V. Vijaysai Reddy (YSRCP).