Parliament adjourned till March 9 (Lead, superseding earlier copy)

Both houses of Parliament were on Thursday adjourned till March 9, marking the end of the first half of the Budget session.

The Budget session began on January 31, with President Pranab Mukherjee addressing the joint sitting of both houses of Parliament.

The Railway Budget, merged with the General Budget for the first time in independent India, was presented on February 1.

The Lok Sabha concluded the discussion on the Motion of Thanks to the President's Address on Tuesday, with Prime Minister Narendra modi replying to the debate.

The Rajya Sabha completed the discussion a day later.

On Thursday, before the two houses went for the month-long break, the Lok Sabha concluded its debate on the General Budget 2016-17, with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's reply.

As soon as the minister concluded his speech, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan adjourned the lower house till March 9, when the second half of the session will start.

The adjournment came suddenly, and even the Finance Minister did not realise it and stood up to respond to issues related to the new state of Telangana raised by some members.

Jaitley was then informed that the house has been already adjourned.

The Rajya Sabha also started the debate on the General Budget on Thursday which has not concluded as yet.

--IANS

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