Three bills introduced on first day of Nagaland Assembly monsoon session

Three bills were introduced and an Act was repealed on the first day of the four-day monsoon session of the Nagaland Assembly on Monday.

The Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition), Act, 1993 was repealed, with the enactment of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act 2013.

The House also adopted a resolution on the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO), Amendment Act, 2019, and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO), Rules, 2020.

Both the repeal motion and the resolution were moved by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio.

Three bills were also introduced in the House during the day.

Minister for Health and Family Welfare, P Paiwang Konyak, introduced the Nagaland Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and the Nagaland Passengers & Goods Taxation (Amendment) Bill, 2023.

Minister for Higher Education, Temjen Imna Along, introduced the North East Christian University (Second Amendment) Bill, 2023.

Assembly Speaker Sharingain Longkumer informed the House that consideration and passage of the three bills will be taken up on Tuesday.

Earlier, assembly secretary-in-charge Khruohituonuo Rio reported the governor's assent to the Nagaland Municipal Act 2001 (Repeal Bill, 2023), Nagaland Fire and Emergency Services Bill, 2021, Nagaland Goods and Services Tax (Sixth Amendment) Bill, 2022, Nagaland Appropriation Bill (No.1), 2023 and Nagaland Appropriation Bill (No.2), 2023.

These were passed in the March session of the House.

The CM and the speaker made obituary references to former minister and sitting MLA Noke Wangnao, who died on August 28. He was the longest-serving legislator of the state.

The members observed a minute-long silence in honour of the departed soul and conveyed condolences to the bereaved family.