The Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha are expected to begin operating concurrently at 11 a.m. on March 14 during the second phase of Parliament’s budget session, according to sources on Tuesday.
However, as previously stated, the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will use their separate chambers and galleries to seat their members.
According to reports, Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla met on Tuesday to negotiate seating arrangements for the budget session’s second half.
The secretaries-general of both houses also examined the matter in light of a significant drop in the number of COVID-19 cases in the country during the third wave of the pandemic and widespread vaccine coverage.
During the first portion of the budget session, the Rajya Sabha met from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., while the Lok Sabha met from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The session began on January 30 with the president’s address to both chambers in a joint sitting, and the Union budget was delivered on February 1.
The budget session of the Lok Sabha and the 251st session of the Rajya Sabha in January 2020 were the first to be cut short by eight sittings due to the outbreak of the pandemic, officials said. The 252nd session of the Rajya Sabha in September 2020 and the monsoon session of the Lok Sabha were the first to be held under full Covid protocols, with members seated in both houses and in two shifts.