This bills were passed amid most of the opposition including the Congress, Left parties, the TMC, the Samajwadi Party and the NCP decided to boycott House proceedings in protest against the suspension of eight MPs for the remainder of the session for unruly behaviour.

Only members from the ruling BJP and its ally JD-U and those of parties such as AIADMK, BJD, YSR-Congress and TDP, which have been extending support to the Modi government on various issues, participated in the debates on the bills.

In most bills, the members participation was sparse and the minister’s reply brief.

The Upper House took up government legislative business after nearly an hour of discussion over the conduct of opposition MPs during the passage of two agriculture reform bills on Sunday, with Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu saying the suspension could be revoked if the members expressed regret over their action.

The Oppositon decided to boycott the proceedings of Rajya Sabha till three key demands as well as requests of revoking of the suspension of eight members, are met. Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad had declared in the upper house on Tuesday as high drama continued for the third straight day.

The suspended members continued their sit-in on the lawns of the parliament complex till about 11:30 AM after spending the night there in protest. They were suspended over Sunday’s unprecedented chaos and “unruly behaviour” in the Rajya Sabha when two controversial farm bills were passed.

Expressing solidarity to the protesting parties, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar announced that he would observe a day-long fast on Tuesday. He criticised the Rajya Sabha Deputy Chaiperson’s conduct and the Modi government’s decision to thwart the Opposition in the House.

The NCP chief further said that the eight MPs were expelled for voicing their opinion and added that the Deputy Chairman did not give priority to rules of the House.

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The members, including Trinamool Congress’s Derek O’Brien, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)’s Sanjay singh, Congress’s Rajeev Satav and CPM’s KK Ragesh, were told they had displayed “unruly behavior especially with the Chair and gross disorderly conduct”.

“I am pained at what happened yesterday. It defies logic. It is a bad day for Rajya Sabha,” said Rajya Sabha chairman Venkaiah Naidu. He said the members threw papers, wrenched mics away, “physically threatened” Deputy Chairman Harivansh Singh and even abused him.

“I am naming Mr Derek O Brien. Please go out of the house,” Mr Naidu said, as he named the suspended members. The house was adjourned for the third time at 10.40 am.

Two of the government’s three farm bills, which have led to massive protests by opposition parties and farmers, were passed on September 21 amid an uproar in the Rajya Sabha.

MPs claim they had asked for a physical vote but they were denied. The deputy chairman conducted a voice vote without paying attention to the protests. Rajya Sabha TV muted the audio telecast of the proceedings.

The bill was opposed by BJP’s estranged ally, the Shiromani Akali Dal, TRS and BJD which, in a rare instance, decided to vote “no”.

The two bills- Farmer’s Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill 2020 and the Farmers(Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020, will now be sent to the President for his assent.

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While the Government and Industry were trying their best to make available a safe and effective vaccine for COVID-19 at the earliest, it was difficult to comment on the exact timelines in view of various complex pathways involved in vaccine development, according to Minister of State (Health and Family Welfare) Ashwini Kumar Choubey.

In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha on September 15, Mr. Choubey said, that the Government has constituted a high-level National Expert Group on vaccine administration for COVID-19 which is chaired by Member, Niti Aayog and co-chaired by Secretary, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. Other representatives are: Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, Secretary, Department of Health Research, Director General of Health Services, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Director, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Head ECD, Indian Council of Medical Research, Director Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (Member NTAGI) and Representatives from States & D/o Expenditure. The committee is addressing issues related to vaccine delivery, selection of suitable vaccines, procurement, prioritization of groups, logistics: Cold chain requirements, finance and National/International equity.

Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has granted test license permission for manufacture of COVID-19 Vaccine for pre-clinical test, examination and analysis to the following manufacturers in India.

M/s Serum Institute of India Pvt., Ltd., Pune, M/s Cadila Healthcare Ltd., Ahmadabad, M/s Bharat Biotech International Ltd., Hyderabad, Biological E Ltd., Hyderabad, M/s Reliance Life Sciences Pvt Ltd., Mumbai, M/s Aurbindo Pharma Limited, Hyderabad and M/s Gennova Biopharmaceuticals Limited, Pune are the companies involved.

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), an autonomous organisation under the Department of Health Research, has informed that the following companies are conducting clinical trials for COVID-19 vaccines in India:

(i) An inactivated whole virion candidate vaccine (BBV152) for SARS-CoV-2 has been developed by Bharat Biotech International Ltd (BBIL) using the virus isolate (NIV-2020-770) provided by ICMR-National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune. Characterization of the vaccine candidate has been undertaken at ICMR-NIV followed by safety and tolerability studies in small animals like rats, mice and rabbits. Status of clinical trials is as follows:

Phase I clinical trials along with parallel studies in large animals have been completed. The trial has revealed excellent safety of the candidate vaccine. Immunogenicity testing is in progress.

Phase II clinical trials were ongoing.

(ii) A DNA vaccine (ZyCov-D) has been developed by Cadila Healthcare Ltd. Pre- clincial toxicity studies were conducted in small animals: mice, rats, rabbits and guinea pigs. The vaccine has been found to be safe and immunogenic. Cadila has partnered with ICMR for conduct of parallel pre-clinical studies in large animals. Status of clinical trials is as follows:

Phase I clinical trials have been completed. The trial has revealed excellent safety of the candidate vaccine. Immunogenicity testing is in progress.

Phase II clinical trials were ongoing.

(iii) Serum Institute of India (SII) and ICMR have partnered for clinical development of two global vaccine candidates:

ChAdOx1-S, which is a non- replicating viral vector vaccine developed by University of Oxford/AstraZeneca. This vaccine is undergoing phase III clinical trials in Brazil. Phase II/III bridging studies have been initiated by ICMR at 14 clinical trial sites. ICMR-National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis (NIRT), Chennai is the lead institution.

ICMR and SII have also partnered for clinical development of a glycoprotein subunit nanoparticle adjuvanted vaccine developed by Novavax from USA. The trial will be initiated in second half of October after the vaccine is manufactured by SII. The trial is led by ICMR-National AIDS Research Institute (NARI), Pune.

As per details provided by Department of Biotechnology (DBT)/Department of Science and Technology(DST), more than 30 vaccine candidates have been supported which are in different stages of development.

The ICMR has allocated Rs.25.00 crore for various studies and other research activities pertaining to vaccine development.

The Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), a statutory body under the Department of Science and Technology, has supported three projects under COVID-19 on vaccine research under Intensified Research in High Priority Areas (IRHPA) The sanctioned expenditure is Rs.22,27,579/- and the committed expenditure is Rs.3,20,78,161/-.

The Department of Biotechnology is also supporting eight proposals by Industry and academia for candidate vaccine development and associated research resources at a total cost of Rs. 75 crore, the statement said.

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The Speaker has called a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee, which began at 11 am on September 13, to discuss the agenda for the session that concludes on October 1. Among those attending the meeting are Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, BJP’s Arjun Ram Meghwal, Congress’s Adhir Ranjan Choudhury, AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi.

In that meeting, issues such as the abolition of Question Hour and the curtailing of Zero Hour are likely to be raised. The government has stood firm on its decision of not resuming the Question Hour, which has generated much resentment among the opposition MPs.

A decision on the discussion on the Indo-China stand-off, the contraction in economy and the handling of the coronavirus pandemic will be issues the opposition is expected to raise.

The government has to decide whether it will agree for these short-duration discussions without voting. In 2017, citing national security, the government had refused to speak on Doklam.

Parliament was adjourned indefinitely in March, days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the countrywide lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus.

This is also the first parliament session being held after 20 soldiers were killed in the line of duty in Ladakh, amid clashes with China. The fatality at the Line of Actual Control – the de facto border between the two nations – in June is a first in four decades and the government may find it difficult to avoid a discussion on the issue.

Ahead of the session, all the members of parliament were requested to get themselves tested for COVID-19. The pandemic has cast a shadow over the monsoon session, with at least seven union ministers and two dozen lawmakers recovering from COVID-19. Around 200 of the 785 MPs are above the age of 65 years, the population vulnerable to coronavirus.

The session will have the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha working in separate shifts and there will be special seating for MPs to ensure distancing. Lok Sabha will sit from 9am to 1pm on the first day and from 3pm to 7pm till October 1. Rajya Sabha will sit from 3pm to 7pm the first day and 9pm to 1pm the rest of the days. Weekends will be working days.

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Preparing himself to preside over the upcoming Monsoon Session of the Parliament beginning on September 14, 2020, Chairman, Rajya Sabha, M. Venkaiah Naidu underwent COVID-19 test on September 11.

It is mandatory for each Member to undergo COVID-19 test (RT-PCR) before attending the upcoming Monsoon Session, according to an advisory issued to all Rajya Sabha Members.

The Members have been asked to get their test done within 72 hours before the commencement of the Session at any hospital/laboratory authorized by the Government or at Parliament House Complex.

For the convenience of the Members, three Test Centres are functioning in Parliament House Annexe from today. The members have also been requested to ensure that their test report is sent in advance to the Rajya Sabha Secretariat via a designated e-mail so as to avoid any inconvenience at the time of their entry into the Parliament House during the Session.

Similarly, RT-PCR test has been made mandatory for the employees of Parliament Secretariats and other agencies deployed in Parliament House Complex who remain in close proximity of the Members during the course of performance of their duties. Also, arrangements have been put in place from today to conduct Rapid Antigen Test for the personal staff and drivers of MPs at the Reception Office, Parliament House.

The Rajya Sabha Chairman has been regularly reviewing the special precautionary/remedial measures taken to contain the spread of COVID-19 infection and to ensure well-being of the Members during the Session.  The Chairman has issued strict instructions to senior officials of the Secretariat not to be complacent about the risk of the infection and to strictly adhere to the guidelines specified.

Risk mitigation and protection of the Members’ health have been the uppermost concerns for the Chairman.  He has held meetings with the Secretaries of Home, Health & Family Welfare, Chairman/DRDO, DG/ICMR to ensure safety of the members and officials.

In order to ensure social distancing norms, the Rajya Sabha chamber, galleries and the Lok Sabha chamber will be used to seat members–57 of whom will be accommodated in the chamber and 51 in galleries of Rajya Sabha. The remaining 136 will be seated in the chamber of Lok Sabha. In all, there are 244 members and one seat is vacant.

Each seat has been provided with a microphone and a sound console to enable to participate in the discussion. Members are now allowed to speak while sitting when called keeping in view of the safety of Members.

With regard to seating of the members at the three locations, respective leaders of the parties/ groups have been intimated the number of seats allocated to them propionate to their strength in all three locations. Respective leaders of the parties/ groups may decide where their party members will sit at the three locations

Four large display screens in the chamber will show the members speaking and there will be seamless live telecast of the proceedings on Rajya Sabha TV. In addition, six smaller display screens and audio consoles have been installed in the four galleries.

As part of ensuring the safety of members and officials, the Chairman, Shri Venkaiah Naidu desires all the members to make full use of the e-Notice facility and serve notices in electronic mode, instead of physically giving them.

It has also been decided to send various Parliamentary papers including List of Business, Bulletins, Bills/ and ordinances to members only through electronic mechanism. Members can access their portal accounts. Accordingly, the circulation of hard copies of these papers is being discontinued. Members may bring their e-Reader devices to the House to refer to the Parliamentary papers or carry print-outs of the same for their use.

The Chairman has sought the cooperation of the Members and urged them to strictly observe all the health protocols relating to COVID-19 as specified by different agencies.

DRDO will also provide multi-utility Covid kits to all MPs. Each kit will contain disposable Three ply masks (40), N-95 masks without wall (5), 20 bottles of sanitizers of 50 ml each, Face shields made of polypropelene (5), gloves (40), touch free hook (to open and close doors without touching them) , Sea Buck Thorn tea bags which enhance immunity and herbal sanitation wipes (variant of tissue papers).

Marshals standing on both sides of the Chairman have been advised to wear both masks and face shields while assisting the Chairman.

Meanwhile, Bhupender Yadav, MP and Chairman, Department-related Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice has submitted an interim report on “Functioning of Virtual Courts/ Court proceedings through video conferencing” to the Chairman at Upa-Rashtrapati Nivas.

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