New Delhi, Jul 8 (PTI) Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu Wednesday reviewed the seating arrangements for parliamentarians during the Monsoon session of Parliament and their participation in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

At an hour-long meeting with the Secretary General and senior officials of the Rajya Sabha Secretariat, Naidu discussed practices to be adopted for the seating arrangement, sources said.

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These broad principles and practices, including virtual participation of members, will be firmed up soon after discussions between Naidu and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, the sources said.

In an earlier meeting taken by Naidu, it was decided that Rajya Sabha members will be seated in the chamber and in the galleries of the House, with virtual participation of others from within the premises of the Parliament House.

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This, the sources said, is to ensure compliance with the norm of physical distancing of six feet in view of the pandemic.

It was decided in the Wednesday meeting that the physical distancing norm will also be applied to the media gallery.

The RS Chairman directed that necessary arrangements may be made to enable viewing of the proceedings by those who could not be accommodated in the media gallery, besides evolving norms for seating of journalists in the media gallery.

Naidu also discussed the procedure to be followed for the election of Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha.

Chairman Naidu was informed that three vacancies in the House, caused by the demise of Beni Prasad Verma and Virendra Kumar, and the disqualification of Sharad Yadav, are to be filled up.

Ahead of the meetings of some Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committees (DRSCs) of Rajya Sabha scheduled in the next few days, the issues relating to the requirement of quorum and the allowances for members attending the meetings were discussed.

It was pointed out by the senior officials that quorum is necessary only for taking decisions and adopting reports by the committees and not for taking up a general discussion on identified issues and for taking evidence from the concerned ministries/departments, the sources said.

The officials also pointed out that committees have occasionally met without the quorum over the years, the sources added.

It was clarified that a meeting of the committee without the quorum entitles the participating members for TA and DA.

It was further informed that the eight Department Related Standing Committees of Rajya Sabha have held 281 meetings during the last three years, of which 16 per cent were without quorum.

The committee on Science and Technology & Environment and Forests held 32 meetings during the last three years of which 22 percent were without quorum. In respect of the 38 meetings of the committee on Home Affairs, 21 percent were without quorum, the sources added.

The Committee on Science and Technology is slated to meet on July 10 and that on Home Affairs on July 15.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)