Day-long winter session today

HARYANA ASSEMBLY REVISED BUDGET ESTIMATES AND SIX BILLS TO BE TABLED

CHANDIGARH: The winter session of Haryana assembly, beginning on Friday, will only be a day-long affair with the state government presenting its revised budget estimates for 2018-19. At least six bills are expected to be tabled during the session.

The finance minister would present the revised budget estimates on Friday instead of the budget session in Februarymarch next year, in view of sluggish capital expenditure spending by a number of departments.

All the departments were asked to furnish information regarding the revised estimates and a meeting of the estimates committee of the assembly was held on Thursday.

The finance department had also sought details from departments on unspent amount, to keep a check on the parking of funds in different banks accounts.

Chief minister (CM) Manohar Lal Khattar said that the daylong session was convened after consultations with the opposition MLAS. “Since many legislators did not want assembly sittings during the year end, we decided to have a day-long session,’’ said Khattar.

Khattar said the winter session was convened to get some important Bills and revised budget estimates passed. He said that from 2005 to 2009, 12 sessions of the Haryana Vidhan Sabha were summoned in which 70 meetings were held. Similarly, 11 sessions were summoned from 2009 to 2014 in which 56 meetings were held whereas from 2015 onwards, 12 sessions were summoned in which 71 meetings were held.

Former CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda however termed the oneday session as an evasive tactic of the government led by Bharatiya Janata Party. “The ruling party does not have the guts to face the opposition. We want a longer assembly session and will raise this matter in the meeting of the business advisory committee of the assembly,’’ Hooda said.

The Bills to be tabled in the House include the Haryana Police Act (Amendment Bill) and Faridabad Metropolitan Development Authority Bill.