SHILLONG, Feb 25: Lok Sabha Speaker, Om Birla has hailed the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly for its innovative ideas and believed the state can act as a model of development and prosperity for the entire nation.
Addressing the members of the Assembly here on Friday, Birla said Meghalaya has all the enabling institutions for inclusive growth while urging the state government and the autonomous councils to make collective efforts to find an amicable solution to the problems being faced by the people of the state.
Lauding the 60-member House for the ‘Zero Hour’ initiative, he asked the members to share the convention and also the new initiatives so that other democratic institutions of the country may adopt the best practise from each other.
“As representatives of the people, we should be fully committed to extend all possible assistance to mark a new beginning for growth and development in Meghalaya and across the country,” Birla said.
Expressing his happiness over the construction of the permanent building of the Assembly, he was optimistic that the new structure would reflect the state’s diversity and rich cultural heritage.
Referring to the 24-hour PRISM (Parliamentary Research and Information Support for MPs) service introduced during the current Budget session of the Parliament, the Speaker advised the Assembly to set up a similar modern research wing. “The Parliament will be happy to provide all possible support for setting up such a wing,” he said.
Birla termed Indian democracy as an exemplary model and said the Parliament, Assemblies and the local bodies are “temples of democracy where public representatives give voice to the hopes and aspirations” of the people.
“It is important that all the democratic institutions — the Parliament, Assemblies and local bodies in the form of Autonomous District Councils or Panchayats – work in coordination and harmony so that the collective responsibility towards the people is fulfilled,” he said. Remembering former Lok Sabha Speaker and former Meghalaya Chief Minister, the late Purno Agitok Sangma, Birla said the parliamentarians remember his significant contributions towards strengthening parliamentary democracy and constitutional practices. “The late Sangma has always been an inspiration for the standards he set,” he said.
The Speaker emphasised that democracy can be successful only when it benefits the last person standing on the periphery. “Dialogues, debates and discussions are the tools to achieve it,” he said.
Recalling the legislative business transacted in Lok Sabha during the COVID-19 pandemic, Birla appreciated the Meghalaya Assembly for convening its session during the pandemic.
Birla appealed to the state governments, legislatures, MLAs and every other stakeholder to positively contribute towards making India ‘Aatmanirbhar’ (self-reliant). He added that the North East has immense potential and capabilities and can thus lead the country on the path to progress.
Earlier, Birla received the guard of honour on his arrival at the Assembly complex.
Sound system error
The sound system of the state Assembly building at Rilbong is often a cause of embarrassment for the legislators. Friday happened to be one of those days.
The national anthem was played before the commencement of the Speaker’s address, but the volume was low. If that were not enough, the anthem stopped for unknown reasons after a few lines were sung.
But some of the MLAs and Birla’s visiting staff continued singing the national anthem, saving the Assembly from a major embarrassment.
Many were surprised when the national anthem was not played after Birla’s speech and before the session got over. For some, Birla’s address in Hindi was too complex to comprehend although copies of his speech were provided.