india

Updated: Apr 29, 2020 22:06 IST

Even as he expressed hope that the monsoon session of Parliament will be held on schedule in July, Rajya Sabha chairperson and vice president M Venkaiah Naidu is learnt to have told members of the Upper House that the resumption of work will depend on the ground situation.

According to a functionary aware of the details, Naidu, who has been calling up MPs during the lockdown to inquire about their health and well-being, was asked by several members about the possible date of reconvening the House.

“The chairperson said it depends on the situation on the ground. He further said with intensive virus containment efforts being mounted across the country and results visible on the ground, one may hope for a normal schedule,” said the functionary quoted above.

Since the imposition of the lockdown on March 25, Naidu called 241 members of the Upper House, including those retired and re-elected recently. He also spoke to former presidents Pranab Mukherjee and Pratibha Patil, and former prime ministers Manmohan Singh and HD Deve Gowda.

“He also spoke to several governors, besides some chief ministers enquiring about the Covid-19 situation in respective states. This is his ‘Mission Connect’ during the confinement,” said the person quoted above.

With the coronavirus pandemic spreading in India and large parts of the country under lockdown, Parliament’s Budget session had to be cut short by almost a fortnight.

Many opposition parties that time urged the government to adjourn the session as cases of Covid-19 began to increase and after it was reported that Lok Sabha MP Dushyant Singh had to come to Parliament after attending a party where singer Kanika Kapoor, who tested positive for the infection, was present. Singh subsequently tested negative for the coronavirus.