Page 22 - Rajya Sabha

Concerned over violent online games, NCP member urges govt for regulation

NCP Rajya Sabha member Fauzia Khan on Tuesday expressed concern over the exposure of children to the violent content of online video games and asked the government to regulate the content. Raising the issue during the Zero Hour in the Upper House, she said that in the digital age, children are increasingly exposed to online video games. Many of these games contain themes unsuitable to small children, such as wanton violence, foul language, substance abuse, sexual content, gender stereotypes, and disregard for law, she noted. "Online games like PubG, Call of Duty, GTA, and Blue Whale Challenge have become immensely popular among the children. This leads to the development of aggressive behaviour in them as they grow up. Excessive exposure can also cause anxiety and phobias, especially in the case of gore content," Khan said. She also referred to an incident in Pune where a 15-year-old boy influenced by a video game, tragically committed suicide by jumping from a 14th-floor ...

Parliament highlights: Centre tables bill to reserve seats for Scheduled Tribes in Goa Assembly

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha highlights: Here are the latest updates on the developments in the Parliament

India needs policy solution to mushrooming of coaching institutes: Congress

India needs a comprehensive policy solution to mushrooming of coaching institutes, the Congress said on Saturday and called for a revision of syllabi, more resources for all exam-takers and investments in the quality of education. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said data provided by the Department of Higher Education to the Rajya Sabha shows that GST collections from coaching institutes have risen rapidly between 2019 and 2024, from Rs 2,241 crore to Rs 5,517 crore. This represents an astonishing 146-per cent rise in Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections, some part of which may be attributable to better enforcement, but it also likely comes from the growing market size, he said. "Worryingly, the GST collections of Rs 5,517 crore in FY24, collected at a rate of 18 per cent, suggests a market of Rs 30,653 crore for coaching institutes annually. This is an extremely worrying figure, since it corresponds to about two-thirds of the Union Budget's ...

Only Centre can validate facts related to it, says Ashwini Vaishnaw

The Centre is best suited to determine whether a particular fact related to it is correct or wrong, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Friday while making the government's stand clear on the PIB's Fact Check Unit. He was replying to a supplementary query during the Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha related to the Supreme Court's stay on the Centre's notification on setting up a fact-checking unit. "The amendment in the IT Intermediary Rules which has been stayed by the Supreme Court, that is still under contest but the fundamental principle is, our point is, anything related to the government of India, only the government can say whether it is a correct fact or a wrong fact. That is our stand," Vaishnaw, the Union Information and Broadcasting Minister, said. The Supreme Court in March this year stayed the Centre's notification on setting up a fact-checking unit under the Press Information Bureau (PIB) to identify fake news about the Union government. The Fact Check Unit was ...

87% cases filed with grievance committees under IT Rules resolved: MoS

The final decision of the GAC is binding on platforms and refusing to comply with the GAC can cost a platform its safe harbour protections

KC Venugopal likely to chair Public Accounts Committee: What is it?

Senior Congress leader KC Venugopal and Amar Singh are part of the committee, which was previously headed by Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury

Swati Maliwal case: Supreme Court grills Kejriwal aide Bibhav Kumar

Is this kind of goon supposed to work in the CM's residence, the Supreme Court asked on Thursday as it came down heavily on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's aide Bibhav Kumar who allegedly assaulted AAP MP Swati Maliwal earlier this year. A bench of Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta and Ujjal Bhuyan posted Kumar's bail plea for next Wednesday and told senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi that the court was shocked with the details of the incident recorded by the Delhi High Court. Kumar has challenged the July 12 order of the Delhi High Court denying him bail in the case and claimed the allegations against him are false. He has also said his custody was no longer required as the probe was over. The apex notice issued notice to the Delhi government on his plea. "Is CM residence a private bungalow? Is this kind of 'goon' supposed to work in the CM's residence?" the bench asked Singhvi, who said there were non-serious injuries and the FIR was lodged after three days of the incident

Sibal criticises Dhankhar's praise of RSS, says Chair should remain neutral

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Thursday said Upper House Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar's remarks that the RSS has "unimpeachable credentials" were contrary to tradition and that such an opinion can be expressed by a member but not by the Chair. Reacting to the remarks, Sibal said on X, "Dhankar ji: RSS as an 'organisation has unimpeachable credentials'. My take: Only his opinion with which others in the House may differ." "Since Dhankar ji represents the will of the House, such an opinion can be expressed by a member but not by the Chair. Contrary to tradition," the Independent Rajya Sabha MP said. During the Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, Samajwadi Party's Ramji Lal Suman said the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) affiliation was the criterion for the government in selecting the head of the National Testing Agency (NTA). At this point, Dhankhar ordered that the comments will not go on record. "I hereby rule that RSS is an organisation that has full constitutional right

Parliament updates: Budget proposes unflinching support to cooperative federalism, says FM in RS

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha news updates: Here are the latest updates on the developments in the Parliament

'It serves nation': Rajya Sabha chairman rebuts SP leader over RSS remark

Vice President and Rajya Sabha chairman, Jagdeep Dhankhar, said RSS has full constitutional rights to participate in the development journey of this nation

Parliament highlights: Govt earned Rs 98,681 crore from LTCG tax in FY23, says minister

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha news highlights: Here are the latest news updates related to the developments in the Parliament

Parliament updates: Delhi govt, MCD responsible for coaching centre deaths, says minister Khattar

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha news: Catch all the news updates related to the developments in the Parliament here

Pvt member's bill listed in RS to ensure rights of workers in view of AI

Amid global concerns over how Artificial Intelligence may affect the workforce, Trinamool Congress MP Mausam Noor is batting for transparency in the use of AI technologies at the workplace to prevent biases, and discrimination in hiring, and promotions from taking place. The Workforce Rights (Artificial Intelligence) Bill, 2023, a private member bill listed by Noor in the Upper House, says as AI becomes increasingly integrated into the workplace, laws must adapt to protect the workers' rights. The bill spells out the rights of an employee in case AI is being used by the organisation. It says the government must ensure transparency in the use of AI technologies within the workplace and give employees the 'right to refuse' tasks or decisions solely based on AI-generated processes if they feel it violates their rights or ethical standards. It also seeks to provide adequate training and upskilling opportunities for employees affected by AI implementation, and protection of employee ...

Primary role of Parliament is to preserve Constitution: V-P Dhankhar

Vice-President further said that the present situation is worrying as indecent conduct is being used as a political weapon

MSP legal guarantee issue rocks Rajya Sabha; Cong-led Oppn stages protest

Opposition parties led by the Congress on Friday created a ruckus and obstructed proceedings in the Rajya Sabha, as they were not satisfied with Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's reply on providing a legal guarantee on minimum support price (MSP) to farmers. The trouble began during Question Hour when Chouhan listed steps taken by the government for the welfare of farmers and spoke about the committee looking into strengthening the MSP system but stopped short of talking about a legal guarantee for crop support prices. Following the minister's remark, Congress MPs, including Randeep Surjewala and Jairam Ramesh, protested, saying that Chouhan's reply was incomplete. Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar tried to diffuse the situation, saying the minister had given a detailed reply and if the members were not satisfied, they should use available avenues to seek answers. Dhankhar repeatedly asked the members to allow the proceedings to continue and also threatened to name .

RS rejects pvt bill making Guvs bound by advice of Council of Ministers

A private member bill seeking to make Governors constitutionally bound by the advice of the Council of Ministers of states was defeated in the Rajya Sabha on Friday, with treasury benches voting against the Bill brought by Kerala CPI (M) member John Brittas. The two sides clashed at the stage of introduction of the Bill, with the Opposition MPs saying Governors in non-BJP ruled states were acting against the elected governments. Deputy Chairman Harivansh put the motion for the introduction of the Bill to voice vote and declared it defeated. Brittas, however, insisted on a division. The motion was rejected with 56 members opposing it and 21 in favour of the introduction. Brittas sought to introduce The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2024 (amendment of article 158) in the afternoon session of the Upper House. Introducing the bill, he said the legislation seeks to ensure the "constitutional responsibility of Governors towards the Council of Ministers in carrying out their functions b

Explore possibility to table Shah Commission report: VP Jagdeep Dhankhar

Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday asked the government to explore the possibility of placing an authentic copy of the Shah Commission report on Emergency excesses on the table of the House, as it had investigated the "darkest period of democracy". The Shah Commission report relates to atrocities committed during the Emergency imposed in 1975. During the Zero Hour, Dhankhar asked the government to take note of the issue raised by Deepak Prakash, a BJP MP from Jharkhand, regarding the matter relating to the Shah Commission report. "The government must examine the possibility of having the authentic report (of Shah Commission) and place it on the table of the House for the benefit of the members and public at large," he said. The Shah Commission was set up to investigate the 'darkest period of democracy' and the report relates to atrocities committed during the Emergency imposed in 1975, he noted. Earlier raising the issue, Prakash said, the Shah Commission, which was s

Parliament updates: There's undeclared emergency in country, says Congress MP Charanjit Singh Channi

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha news: Catch all the news updates related to the developments in the Parliament here

Parliament highlights: Not possible to name every state in budget, says FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha news: Catch all the news updates related to the developments in the Parliament here

Govt does not realise erasing diversity is anti-historical move: Sibal

In a sharp attack at the BJP-led government, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Monday said the present establishment does not realise that erasing diversity is an "anti-historical" move and will lead to tensions. Delivering the 4th Memorial Lecture in honour of M P Veerendra Kumar, Sibal talked about the idea of India and its evolution at length. "Why do we talk about the idea of India? It is because most of us do not understand the birth of this great nation. If you ask me, a nation is comprised of so many facets which are embedded in its history. Unless you understand the history of a nation and its genesis over centuries, you will never be able to understand what the nation is all about," Sibal said. "In order to understand what a country stands for you must understand how it evolved over centuries and once you understand that, you realize what India is all about," the former Congress leader said. The idea of India has evolved over centuries, he asserted. "Why is it that we are suc