High level Committee of Speakers of State Assemblies recently met in New Delhi on the behest of the Speaker of the Parliament Sumitra Mahajan, to discuss reforms in work culture of State Assemblies. The focus was on giving due importance to the Question Hour and Zero Hour practice and fixing the minimum sessions of legislature in a year. The necessity of bringing in some reform in the work culture of the Assemblies was felt in the wake of giving more opportunity to the law makers to raise current issues of vital importance and seek Government’s response to them. It has been unanimously resolved by the Committee of Speakers there has to be a minimum 60 meetings of the legislature in a year.
The direct impact of this decision will be that legislators will get more time to put important questions to the Government and seek clarification. The Committee has recommended that in no way will Question and Zero Hour be overlooked or eschewed and a business session will begin only after this provision is exhausted. If democracy is the Government of the people, by the people and for the people, then obviously people’s problems need to be highlighted and questions asked by the representatives and the Government has to be answerable.
We appreciate decision of the Committee and at the same time believe that more reforms in the work culture of the Assemblies could be brought forward. The Speaker of Lok Sabha has taken a good and useful step that will streamline delivery system in our Assemblies. J&K Assembly has not been having more than 30 sittings on average during a year and only little time is given to Questions and Zero Hour. Hopefully with the resolution of the Committee of Speaker, this work culture will improve and more issues will be addressed in the process.
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