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Rajya Sabha
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Raghav Chadha on Wednesday called for introducing a 'Right to Recall' mechanism, arguing that voters should have the power to remove elected representatives before the completion of their five-year term if they fail to perform. Raising the issue during the Zero Hour, he said, while Indian citizens have the constitutional right to elect Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of Legislative Assemblies (MLAs), there is currently no direct mechanism for voters to de-elect them mid-term on grounds of non-performance or misconduct. The 'Right to Recall' framework would allow constituents to initiate a formal process to remove an elected representative through a structured and legally defined procedure, he said, adding that India already provides for impeachment of the President, Vice President and judges, and allows no-confidence motions against governments. Extending a similar accountability principle to individual legislators, he said, would strengthen democrat
India's strategic petroleum reserve can last 74 days to meet the demand arising out of any global turbulence, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri informed the Rajya Sabha on Monday. Replying to supplementaries during Question Hour, the minister said for any country like India, which is growing at a phenomenal pace, there must be a very viable and secure reserve, so that it is not in a vulnerable situation in the case of global turbulence. He said India has several refineries both in the West coast as well as the East. "According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), today we are the world's third largest consumer of crude oil. We have the world's fourth largest refining capacity - currently around 260 million metric tonne per annum going on to 320 million metric tonne per annum. And, we are also the world's fifth largest exporter of petroleum products. "The strategic petroleum reserve is designed to ensure that in case of total global turbulence, we must have enough stock left to
Opposition members of the Rajya Sabha on Monday staged a walkout from the House while raising the issue of LoP Mallikarjun Kharge not being allowed to speak. Congress member Kharge rose during Question Hour to say that the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi was not allowed to speak on the Motion of Thanks. Chairman C P Radhakrishnan, however, did not allow him to raise the issue relating to the Lok Sabha and said "nothing that he says will go on record". Earlier, Kharge raised the issue of Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal making a statement last week on the India-US trade deal, outside the House when Parliament was in session. As the Chairman did not allow Kharge to speak, members of the entire Opposition were on their feet, raising their protest. As the Chairman proceeded with the Question Hour, Opposition members continued with their protest and later staged a walkout from the House.
The government on Friday informed Parliament that it is seeking inter-ministerial comments on a proposal to merge two central agriculture schemes - Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana and Krishonnati Yojana - into a single umbrella scheme to provide greater flexibility to states. Minister of State for Agriculture Ramnath Thakur, in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, said the ministry's centrally sponsored schemes currently operate under two umbrellas - Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (PM-RKVY) and Krishonnati Yojana (KY). An Expenditure Finance Commission (EFC) draft for an umbrella scheme covering centrally sponsored schemes of the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare for the 16th Finance Commission period has been initiated, he said. "The draft has been circulated for inter-ministerial consultations," Thakur said. The single umbrella scheme proposal has been initiated to give greater flexibility to states to take up need-based components, he ...
The government has sold movable and immovable enemy properties worth Rs 2,930 crore till January 28, Rajya Sabha was informed Wednesday. Assets left behind by people who have taken citizenship of Pakistan and China - mostly between 1947 and 1962 - are called enemy property. In a written response to a question, Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar said the disposal and monetisation of enemy properties are done in accordance with the provisions of the Enemy Property Act, 1968 and the rules and guidelines framed therein. "As on 28.01.2026, movable and immovable enemy properties worth Rs. 2,930 crore have been sold," he said. Kumar said the government has taken several steps to fast-track monetisation of enemy properties making district magistrates to act as ex-officio deputy custodian of such properties, SDMs as ex-officio assistant custodian, tehsildar as ex-officio inspector and deputy secretary posted the custodian of Enemy Property for India (CEPI) regional offi
The Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD), a unit of the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), has estimated significant rare earth minerals resources in beach sands and hard rocks, with 13.15 million tonnes of monazite identified in deposits from eight states. Monazite is a reddish-brown, phosphate mineral rich in rare-earth elements (REEs) and thorium, primarily sourced from heavy mineral beach sands and igneous rocks. "As on January 28, 2026, rare earth minerals resources estimated by AMD include 136 deposits of beach sand minerals containing 13.15 million tonnes of monazite (a mineral of thorium and rare earths) occurring in the coastal beach, teri/red sands and inland alluvium in parts of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Jharkhand and West Bengal," Coal and Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy said in the Rajya Sabha. The deposits, containing about 7.23 million tonnes in-situ rare earth oxide (equivalent) resources, are located in
The civil aviation ministry on Monday said all probable causes leading to the Air India plane crash in June last year are being investigated, and all efforts are being made to complete the probe in a time-bound manner. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is probing the crash that killed a total of 260 people. In one of the worst aircraft accidents in India, a total of 260 people, including 241 passengers, died after Air India's Boeing 787-8 aircraft operating flight AI171 to London Gatwick crashed soon after take off from Ahmedabad on June 12, 2025. Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol on Monday told the Rajya Sabha that the AAIB probe is in progress. "All probable causes leading to the accident are being investigated, and all efforts are being made to complete the investigation in a time-bound manner," he said in a written reply. In its preliminary report on the crash that was released on July 12 last year, AAIB said the fuel supply to both engines o
Rajya Sabha member, author and philanthropist Sudha Murty on Wednesday cautioned against fake videos circulating online that falsely use her image and voice to promote financial schemes and investments. She said, these are "deepfakes" created without her knowledge or consent. "I want to alert you to fake videos circulating online that falsely use my image and voice to promote financial schemes and investments. These are deepfakes created without my knowledge or consent," Murty said. "Please do not make any financial decisions based on these fraudulent videos. I urge you to verify information through official channels and report any such content you encounter. Stay vigilant and stay safe. Jai Hind!" she posted on 'X' along with a video message. In the video message, Murty, who is also the Chairperson of the Murty Trust said, as a rule, she never talks about investments or doing anything with money. "I'm really concerned and pained to tell everyone, when you look at facebook there i
The Budget session of Parliament will be held from January 28 to April 2, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said on Friday. The Budget session begins with the address of President Droupadi Murmu to the joint session of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha in the Lok Sabha chamber. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will table the Economic Survey and present the general Budget. However, Rijiju did not share details on the date of the presentation of the Budget. February 1, which has been fixed as the Budget Day, falls on a Sunday this year. Parliament will be in recess from February 13 till March 9. "On the recommendation of the Govt of India, Hon'ble President of India, Smt. Droupadi Murmu ji has approved the summoning of both the Houses of Parliament for the Budget Session 2026. "The Session will commence on 28 January 2026 and continue till 2 April 2026," Rijiju said in a post on X. "The first phase concludes on 13 February 2026, with Parliament reassembling on 9 March
Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan on Friday strongly disapproved of disruptions by Opposition members during the passage of the rural employment guarantee bill (G RAM G), terming the conduct "unbecoming of Members of Parliament", and urged them to introspect and refrain from such behaviour in future. Radhakrishnan read out a synopsis of the legislative and other business transacted during the 15-day sitting of the Winter session before adjourning the proceedings sine die. Adjourned sine die (Latin for without a day') means suspending a parliamentary session indefinitely, without setting a specific date to reconvene. It's used when legislative bodies end a session without naming a future date for reassembly. The Winter session of Parliament started on December 1. "Disruption created during yesterday's sitting by the Opposition Members by shouting slogans, displaying placards, disrupting the Minister replying to the discussion, tearing up papers and throwing them in the well of