With Jharkhand Assembly set to commence Budget Session from March 26, guidelines and Standard Operating Procedures (SoP) have been issued for those attending the session.
None of the MLAs or officers will be allowed to attend the budget session of Jharkhand assembly without undergoing a coronavirus test. The MLAs have been asked to submit their report 72 hours ahead of the commencement of the session.
Jharkhand Assembly secretary Mahendra Prasad said, “The Jharkhand Assembly has issued Standard Operating Procedures amid Covid pandemic for MLAs, staff attending the budget session.” Journalists reaching the Assembly for covering the budget session have to furnish their corona negative report 72 hours before the session.
Journalists covering the Assembly session will also need to take Covid-19 tests and will only be allowed after a positive report. Sanitisers, face masks and face shields will be available for the MLAs. The personal staff of the MLAs will not be allowed beyond entrance points of the house. Moreover, if any MLA is found suffering from Covid-19 then as per the protocol, the concerned MLA can assign his question to another MLA and he or she has to inform Assembly secretariat 24 hours before the session.
The Budget session of fifth Jharkhand Assembly scheduled from February 26 will be held in accordance with the Covid-19 protocol. The Budget session of the Jharkhand Assembly will be held from February 26 to March 23. The government will table the State budget on March 3, and the session will have 16 working days.
The legislators will be provided with gloves and N-95 masks. They have been asked to make use of the sanitisers kept in their desk to sanitise hands frequently. The legislators have been asked to wear the masks in the House and to ensure physical distancing.
This will be the second budget of the JMM-led coalition government in the State. Many important bills including the new State recruitment policy will be tabled in the session.
Sources said that Jharkhand Assembly has decided to follow strict corona guidelines as in past few days there has been surge in coronavirus cases across the country. India has been witnessing a rise in the COVID-19 active cases over the past few days which is pegged at 1,45,634, comprising 1.32 per cent of the country's total infections, the Union health ministry said. In Jharkhand the total corona cases is 119596, out of which 118058 persons have recovered from infection. The number of deaths is 1085, while the active cases are 453. The recovery rate in Jharkhand is 98.71 per cent while the mortality rate is 0.91 per cent.
