
PUDUCHERRY: Speaker of the Legislative Assembly R Selvam on Friday said that the second part of the fifth session of the 15th Puducherry Legislative Assembly will convene at 9.30 am on February 12.
The session primarily serves the constitutional obligation of convening the assembly once every six months The Budget session of the Puducherry Assembly was adjourned sine die on August 14, 2024, and therefore convening it by February 14 is necessary. Addressing media, Speaker said that the agenda for the meeting includes supplementary demand for grants for 2024-2025 and tabling of papers and report of Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG)
The business advisory committee of the Legislative Assembly will decide the duration of the session. Sources said that the session is expected to be just for a day. The Speaker said that the budget presentation will be presented by Chief Minister N Rangasamy some time in March. A draft budget will be prepared by the Puducherry Consultative Committee for Transformation (the renamed Puducherry Planning Board) after the allocation for the UT is made in Union Budget, he said. The draft budget will be sent to Government of India and on approval, the budget will be prepared and presented.
The Assembly Secretariat is working towards making the Assembly proceedings digital and paperless under National e-Vidhan Application. The Centre has appointed a consultant and provided Rs 8 crore to digitise the proceedings of the Puducherry Assembly, the Speaker said. The staff of the Legislative Assembly has been also given training for this.
He also said that the Legislative Assembly will respond to the notices submitted by two independent MLAs (for moving no confidence motion against Speaker R Selvam) as per the rules governing the functioning of the Legislative Assembly. The Business Advisory Committee will advise whether the notices can be taken up in the Legislative Assembly , he said.