New Delhi , January 13 : The Budget Session of Parliament is set to commence from January 31 and slated to continue till April 6, Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Pralhad Joshi said on Friday.
There will be 27 sittings spread over a period of 66 days and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is likely to present the Union Budget on February 1. This would be the fifth Union Budget that Sitharaman would present. The Union budget will be presented as the final full-year budget under PM Narendra Modi’s government, before the national elections slated for 2024.
“Budget Session 2023 of Parliament will commence from 31 January and continue till 6 April with 27 sittings spread over 66 days with usual recess. Amid Amrit Kaal looking forward to discussions on Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address, Union Budget and other items” Joshi tweeted.
The Union minister said during the Budget session of 2023, the recess will be from February 14 till March 12 to enable the department-related Parliamentary Standing Committees to examine the demands for grants and make reports relating to their ministries or departments.
According to sources, the session will go on from January 31 till February 13, with the recess in between and then the session will start from March 13 and carry on till April 6.
During the first part of the Budget Session, the two Houses have a detailed discussion on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address followed by a discussion on the Union Budget.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi will reply to the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address, the Finance Minister will reply to the debate on the union budget.
During the second part of the Budget Session, the major focus is on the discussion on the demands for grants for various ministries apart from the government’s legislative agenda. The Union Budget, a money bill, is passed during this part of the session.
The work on the new Parliament building is being carried out as part of the Central Vista development. Those involved in the construction of the Parliament are confident that the second part of the Budget Session can be conducted in the new Parliament building
During the last session, nine bills were introduced in Lok Sabha and seven bills were passed by the lower House of Parliament.
The Rajya Sabha passed nine bills and the total number of bills passed by both Houses of Parliament during the session was nine. (ANI)

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted that a fresh spell of dense to very dense fog will emerge again over some parts of Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh from Saturday. It said, due to continuation of prevailing light winds and high moisture near surface over Indo-Gangetic plains, dense to very dense fog is likely to continue in some parts of Bihar. The Dense fog is also very likely in isolated pockets over West Bengal, Sikkim, Odisha, Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura. Due to fog, over two dozen trains are running late in the Northern Railway region.

IMD said, no significant change in minimum temperatures is likely over many parts of Northwest India and adjoining central India during the next 48 hours. It said, currently temperatures have increased in northwest India due to a western disturbance.

New Delhi , January 13 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the world’s longest river Cruise, MV Ganga Vilas in Varanasi via video conferencing on Friday.

Prime Minister also inaugurated the Tent City at Varanasi and laid the foundation stones for several other inland waterways projects worth more than Rs 1,000 crore.
Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were present at Varanasi on the occasion.
Speaking at the occasion, Sonowal said, “Today will be written in the history of the world’s river cruise as it will be the longest journey in the world. It will go through UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Bangladesh till Dibrugarh. Through this journey, not only the path of tourism but also the path of trade will open.”

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said, “In the last three days, tourists of the river cruise MV Ganga Vilas visited Varanasi and nearby places and experienced the culture. PM will inaugurate five new jetties in the state today. Kashi is moving ahead with a new identity today.”
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sharma who joined the ceremony virtually thanked PM Modi for flagging of river cruise connecting Kashi to Assam.

“Passengers who will come on this cruise will get the opportunity to visit Maa Kamakhya Temple, Kaziranga National Park and other place,” Chief Minister Sarma said.
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav also joined the event virtually. He said the river cruise MV Ganga Vilas will visit Buxar, Chapra, Patna, Munger, Sultanganj and Kahalgaon in the state.

“The tourists will be accorded a traditional welcome at each port and taken to visit historical places,” Tejashwi Yadav said.
An official of Port, Shipping and Waterways told ANI that the world’s longest River Cruise MV Ganga Vilas is the first-ever cruise vessel to be made in India.
MV Ganga Vilas will begin its journey from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh and travel around 3,200 km in 51 days to reach Dibrugarh in Assam via Bangladesh, sailing across 27 river systems in India and Bangladesh.

MV Ganga Vilas has three decks, 18 suites on board with a capacity of 36 tourists, with all the luxury amenities. The maiden voyage has 32 tourists from Switzerland signing up for the entire length of the journey.
The MV Ganga Vilas cruise is curated to bring out the best of the country to be showcased to the world. The 51 days cruise is planned with visits to 50 tourist spots including World Heritage Sites, National Parks, River Ghats, and major cities like Patna in Bihar, Sahibganj in Jharkhand, Kolkata in West Bengal, Dhaka in Bangladesh, and Guwahati in Assam.
The journey will give the tourists an opportunity to embark upon an experiential voyage and indulge in the art, culture, history, and spirituality of India and Bangladesh.
Further, Tent City has been conceptualized on the banks of the River Ganga to tap the potential of tourism in the region. The project has been developed opposite to city ghats which will provide accommodation facilities and cater to the increased tourist influx in Varanasi, especially since the inauguration of Kashi Vishwanath Dham.
It has been developed by Varanasi Development Authority. The tourists will reach the Tent City by boats from different Ghats situated in the vicinity. The tent city will be operational from October to June every year and will be dismantled for three months due to rise in river water level in the rainy season.
Prime Minister inaugurated Haldia Multi-Modal Terminal in West Bengal. Developed under Jal Marg Vikas Project, Haldia Multi-Modal Terminal has a cargo handling capacity of around over 3 Million Metric Tonne Per Annum (MMTPA) and the berths are designed to handle vessels up to around 3000 Deadweight tonnage (DWT).
Further, he also inaugurated four floating community jetties at Saidpur, Chochakpur, and Zamania in Ghazipur district, and at Kanspur in Ballia district in Uttar Pradesh. Besides, a foundation stone was laid for the five Community Jetties at Digha, Nakta Diyara, Barh, Panapur in Patna district, and Hasanpur in Samastipur district in Bihar.
More than 60 community jetties are being constructed along river Ganga across the states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal to boost economic activities and improve the livelihoods of local communities in the region.
The community jetties would play a key role in improving the livelihoods of people by providing simple logistics solutions for small farmers, fishery units, unorganized farm-producing units, horticulturists, florists, and artisans focussing on economic activities in and around the hinterland of river Ganga.
A Maritime Skill Development Centre for North East at Guwahati was also be inaugurated. It will help honing the rich talent pool in the North Eastern region and will provide for better employment opportunities in the burgeoning logistics industry.
In addition to these, Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for a ship repair facility and an elevated road at Pandu Terminal in Guwahati. The Ship Repair facility at the Pandu Terminal will save a lot of valuable time as it takes more than a month for a ship to be transported to the Kolkata Repair facility and back.
Moreover, it will also result in huge savings in terms of money as the transportation cost of the ship will also be saved. The dedicated road connecting the Pandu Terminal to NH 27 will enable 24-hour connectivity. (ANI)

New Delhi: India reported 197 new coronavirus infections in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases to 4,46,80,583.

The country’s active caseload currently now stands at 2,309.

India also recorded 5,30,723 Covid deaths so far, with one in Kerala in the past 24 hours.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday expressed condolences over the demise of veteran politician and founder-member of Bihar’s ruling Janata Dal-United (JD-U) Sharad Yadav.

Taking to Twitter, PM Modi said, “Pained by the passing away of Shri Sharad Yadav Ji. In his long years in public life, he distinguished himself as MP and Minister. He was greatly inspired by Dr Lohia’s ideals. I will always cherish our interactions. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti.”Sharad Yadav passed away on Thursday, informed his daughter Subhashini Sharad Yadav through a social media post.

Facebook Post by Sharad Yadav’s Daughter

Yadav who had launched his own party Loktantrik Janata Dal merged with Lalu Yadav’s outfit RJD in March 2020 which he said was the “first step towards a united opposition”.

The condolence messages also came from Congress with the party president Mallikarjun Kharge.

“I am saddened by the demise of Sharad Yadav, a senior leader of the socialist stream of the country, former JDU president. Serving the country as a former Union Minister and an outstanding Parliamentarian for decades, he strengthened the politics of equality. My deepest condolences to his family and supporters,” Mallikarjun Kharge tweeted in Hindi.“Deeply saddened by the demise of my friend, veteran leader and our colleague in Parliament Sharad Yadav. He was a distinguished student leader who rose to the highest heights in public life. He was an outspoken leader and deeply committed to an inclusive India,” Congress Rajya Sabha MP Anand Sharma said on his official Twitter handle.

Sharad Yadav was a former union minister in various governments.

Sharad Yadav had formed Loktantrik Janata Dal in 2018 miffed with Janata Dal (United) returning to an alliance with the BJP in Bihar.