First day of Budget Session: President Kovind's joint address, Economic Survey 2018

NEW DELHI: The Budget Session of Parliament is set to begin at 11 am today, with an address by President Ram Nath Kovind. The key event, however, will be the tabling of the crucial Economic Survey.

President Kovind will deliver his address to a joint sitting of both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.

The day will also see the Economic Survey 2018 tabled in both the Houses of Parliament. The document is critical in the process of the Union Budget. It is not only an appraisal of the economy and government spending over the financial year that is coming to a close but also a roadmap that provides the rationale for Union Budget 2018, which will be tabled by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on February 1.

Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian, who has overseen the preparation of the Economic Survey, had announced a webpage that would put the key document in the public domain.

Union Budget 2018 is in critical focus in government, policy and media circles as it will be the last full Budget of the ruling Narendra Modi government. With Lok Sabha elections scheduled for the summer of 2019, what Jaitley will present next year would be a vote-on-account.

The Budget Session of Parliament will pan out in two spells. The first spell of the session will end on February 9. Parliament will then convene again between March 5 and April 6, when the finance bill will be finalised.

Not just the Economic Survey and the Budget, this Budget Session will see Parliament grapple with many more pieces of important legislative work. As many as 28 bills will be tabled in the Lok Sabha, while 39 bills are listed for the Rajya Sabha for the upcoming session.

The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017 related to triple talaq, the Codes of Wages Bill, 2017 and Rights of Children to Free and Compulsory Education, 2017 are among the important bills that will be tabled for discussion in the Budget Session.

While the long pending issues including the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2016 and the Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2016, will be discussed in the Lower House, the triple talaq bill passed in the Lok Sabha in the 2017 Winter Session, will be in focus in the Upper House of Parliament.

Here is a list of legislative business on Parliament’s agenda for the Budget Session:

Lok Sabha:

Bills referred to Joint Committee:

· The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Second Bill, 2015

· The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016

· The Financial Resolution and Deposit Insurance Bill, 2017

Bill returned to Lok Sabha:

· The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Third Amendment) Bill, 2017(as passed by Lok Sabha, as reported by Select Committee of Rajya Sabha and returned with amendments to Lok Sabha)

Bills referred to Standing Committees:

· The Codes of Wages, 2017

· The Rights of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Second Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The National Medical Commission Bill, 2017

Bills not referred to Standing Committee:

· The High Court's (Alteration of Names) Bill, 2016

· The Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment) Bill, 2016

· The Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Amendment Bill, 2017

· The Payment of Gratuity (Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The Dentists (Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The Representation of People (Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The Specific Relief (Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The National Council for Teacher Education (Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The Consumer Protection Bill, 2018

· The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Bill, 2018

Bills on which reports presented by Standing Committee:

· The Factories (Amendment) Bill, 2014

· The Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2014

· The Lokpal and Lokayuktas and Other Related Law (Amendment) Bill, 2014

· The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (Amendment) Bill, 2015

· The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2016

· The Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2016

· The Merchant Shipping Bill, 2016

· The Major Port Authorities Bill, 2016

· The Inter-State River Water Disputes (Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The National Sports University Bill, 2017

Rajya Sabha:

Bill, as reported by Joint Committee:

· The Indian Medical Council (Amendment) Bill, 1987

Bills as passed by the Lok Sabha:

· The Whistle Blowers Protection (Amendment) Bill, 2015

· The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015

· The Factories (Amendment) Bill, 2016

· The National Commission for Backward Classes (Repeal) Bill, 2017

· The State Bank (Repeal and Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The Central Road Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The Requisition Acquisition of Immovable Property (Amendment) Bill, 2017

· The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017

Bills not referred to Standing Committee:

· The Tamil Nadu Legislative Council (Repeal) Bill, 2012

· The Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies (Third) Bill, 2013

· The Delhi Rent (Repeal) Bill, 2013

Bill, as passed by the Lok Sabha and as reported by Select Committee:

· The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2017

Bill referred to Select Committee and report presented:

· The Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Bill, 2013

Bills on which report presented by Standing Committee:

· The Constitution (79th Amendment) Bill, 1992 (small family norms for legislators)

· The Delhi Rent (Amendment) Bill, 1997

· The Provisions of the Municipalities (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Bill, 2001

· The Seeds Bill, 2004

· The Homoeopathy Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2005

· The Indian Medicine Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2005

· The Indian Medicine and Homoeopathy Pharmacy Bill, 2005

· The Private Detective Agencies (Regulation) Bill, 2007

· The Pesticides Management Bill, 2008

· The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Amendment) Bill, 2008

· The Mines (Amendment) Bill, 2011

· The Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Amendment Bill, 2011

· The National Commission for Human Resources for Health Bill, 2011

· The Armed Forces Tribunal (Amendment) Bill, 2012

· The Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Amendment Bill, 2012

· The Building and Other Construction Workers Related Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2013

· The Employment Exchanges (Compulsory Notification of Vacancies) Bill, 2013

· The Rajasthan Legislative Council Bill, 2013

· The Indian Medical Council (Amendment) Bill, 2013

· The Nalanda University (Amendment) Bill,2013

· The Assam Legislative Council Bill, 2013

· The Registration (Amendment) Bill, 2013

· The Waqf Properties (Eviction of Un-authorized Occupants) Bill, 2014

· The Homoeopathy Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2015

(With inputs from ANI)