The honourable Speaker of Lok Sabha, Shri Om Birla ji, Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha Shri Harivansh ji, my Cabinet Colleague Shri Prahlada Joshi ji, Shri Hardeep Singh Puri ji, Chairman of House Committee, Bhai C.R. Patil ji, Shri Om Mathur ji, all the MPs present here, all my Cabinet colleagues and all other dignitaries.
It is generally felt that when a new session begins, the MPs face a lot of inconvenience in terms of accommodation arrangements. Hotels have to be booked for a long time. And as soon as the houses are vacated, then those are repaired and renovated; and this cycle goes on. A thoughtful attempt has to be made to come out of it and to find out a way of developing systems permanently and to adapt to the changing times. MPs do not need more than one room for themselves, but the biggest part of their work involves people coming to them from their area in large numbers. People who come from far and wide places are concerned about their night stay here and people in public life know very well that whether there is a place available or not, we cannot turn them away.
Now it is very difficult for the outsiders to understand this problem and the MPs know the seriousness of the challenges. And so well thought out efforts have been made since the previous session. Another issue is that some buildings have become very old and these require some repairing every day. And as a result, it is inconvenient both for those who are making arrangements as well as for those who are staying there. Efforts are being made to find permanent solution to this issue. In the coming days, more buildings should be constructed quickly. If the government works through its own department in such a good way, then outsiders will be surprised that even the in-house work is done in such a brilliant way! So, I congratulate all the people of the department who did this work. Usually people associate government work with delays; people always ask about the delay or by when would it be completed or how much more time is needed? But it was completed before the stipulated time. Usually budget keeps on increasing in a Government work but it was done at a lower cost than the budget and quality was not compromised. Thus, time was saved, money was saved and care was taken for all the facilities there. I congratulate all the friends who have contributed to the construction of the building, and the government officials who have worked towards it.
This time we have seen that the Parliament has performed very well and the credit goes to all political parties, all the MPs and the Speaker. But a unanimous voice came from both the Houses. Both the Speaker and the Vice-President suggested that as the year 2022 that will mark 75 years of Indian independence is approaching, a few changes should also be made in our Parliament.
It is true and I have been hearing this from the MPs for the last five years. Even friends from media world keep saying that things have become too outdated now, some changes should be made. Modern facilities should be put in place and as the demand has come from the House itself, the government has taken it seriously. Officials are brainstorming on the issue as to how modern facilities can be put in place in the Parliament or if required possibility of constructing a new building. And I have requested them to be as quick as possible so that it can be finished by the 75th year of independence. Although very little time is left, but we should still try. Once again, I congratulate all the MPs for this new facility and wish them all the best.
I also thank all the dignitaries sitting on the stage, who have also contributed significantly.
Thanks to all my colleagues....
