Poor attendance in Parliamentary panel meets a concern

The demand for sending Bills to a Parliamentary Standing Committee is a constant demand but when it comes to attendance in its meetings, statistics show a very dismal picture.

Latest statistics provided by Rajya Sabha sources showed that around 100 out of 248 Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs in eight panels under the Rajya Sabha have not attended two or more meetings since its reconstitution in September this year. Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu to hold a meeting with panel heads on Thursday to ensure attendance amid indications that he will be taking strict action against those skipping such meetings.

Only 18 of the 80 Rajya Sabha MPs and 18 out of 168 Lok Sabha members attended all the 41 meetings of the eight Parliamentary Standing Committee meetings, Naidu said. Interestingly, seven of the 18 Rajya Sabha MPs who have 100% attendance are Chairmen of panels.

Sources said the attendance was less than 50% in 23 meetings with the Standing Committee on Home Affairs fairing poorly with an attendance of around 33% only.

Naidu told the panel heads that the average attendance in 41 meetings held by eight Standing Committees was 48.54% with the attendance ranging from a low of 5% in case of one meeting of the Committee on Home Affairs to 25% in one meeting of the Committee on Human Resource Development.

The average attendance in each of the meetings of these Committees ranged from 39% in case of the Committee on Home Affairs to 65% in case of the Committee on HRD. Members' attendance has been below the halfway mark of 16 in case of 23 of the total 41 meetings.

Earlier last month, sources had indicated that Naidu was mulling to write to floor leaders in the Upper House to ensure attendance in such meetings. He was also planning to strictly enforce the rule, which was not used so far, that throws out an MP who misses two consecutive meetings without his permission.

Naidu had also asked Bhupender Yadav, Chairman of Select Committee on Surrogacy Bill, to add an annexure to the report on attendance of MPs part of the panel.

Informing the Rajya Sabha about his meeting with Chairmen of Standing Committees, Naidu said these panels have been conceived as an effective instrument of enabling detailed scrutiny of legislative proposals besides focused and detailed examination of various issues in a bipartisan manner which may not always be possible in both the Houses of Parliament.

The panels under Rajya Sabha -- Commerce, Health and Family Welfare, Home Affairs, Human Resource Development, Industry, Personnel, Public Grievances and Law and Justice, Science and Technology, Environment, Forests and Climate Change and Transport, Tourism and Culture -- have been reconstituted in September this year and have held a total of 41 meetings since then.

He said each member of a Standing Committee represents 25 MPs. "If one member is absent, the voice of 25 MPs would not be heard. I hence, appeal to leaders of all the parties and members of this august House to ensure quantitative and qualitative functioning of these Committees in whom the Parliament has vested an important responsibility of functioning on it’s behalf," he added.