Shimla, June 23: The budget session of the Himachal Pradesh Assembly started on a stormy note today with opposition BJP staging a walkout protesting the rejection of their plea to discuss fodder and water shortage in the state. BJP MLA K D Dharmani was on his feet immediately after the question hour and demanded a discussion on the drought situation and shortage of fodder and water. Speaker Gangu Ram Mussafir informed that irrigation and public health minister Kaul Singh Thakur would make a statement in the house on the issue and as such a discussion could not be allowed. When the minister rose to make the statement, the BJP members started raising slogans. Nothing could be heard in the din and efforts made by the speaker to pacify the BJP legislators proved futile.
He said the party had given five notices on the drought situation and an adjournment notice on fodder shortage but the Speaker intervened saying that he had not received any such notice.
When Musaffir asked the minister to go ahead with his statement, the angry BJP members staged a walkout.
Kaul Singh said under the rules, a minister could make a suo-moto statement in the house and he had given a notice in this regard four days ago.
He informed the house that out of 7,142 water supply schemes in the state, 2,456 schemes had been affected due to scanty rains while 346 had almost dried up.

Bureau Report