Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday virtually inaugurated multi-storeyed flats for Members of Parliament (MPs) at Dr BD Marg in Delhi. A total of 76 flats have been developed from eight old bungalows, which were more than 80 years old, as was noted by a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on Saturday
Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla was present at the virtual inauguration of the flats. PM Modi began his address by wishing Birla on his 58th birthday, which falls on the day, and congratulated the MPs on the inauguration of the facility.
The Prime Minister noted how not just the MP residences but several other projects were pending since long, which were completed by his government, and before time. “A long wait of 23 years for the Ambedkar International Centre came to an end under our government. We also built the National War Memorial near India Gate in memory of our bravehearts. The new building of the Central Information Commission, as well as the National Police Memorial, were built under this government,” he said.
He then lauded MPs for facilitating Parliament’s proceedings even during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, noting how both houses took turns to function one after the other even on weekends and also how all parties helped in smooth functioning of the House in the Monsoon session.
PM Modi also noted how in 2014 more than 300 MPs, including himself, were first-time parliamentarians. This number, he noted, was 260 in 2019. On Parliament’s productivity, he said, “The 16th Lok Sabha passed 15% more bills than the 15th. The 17th Lok Sabha, in the first session, did 135% work in the time allotted. The Rajya Sabha also had a 100% efficiency. “
The Prime Minister also mentioned several key legislations that have been passed in the last 12-18 months, including the farm laws, labour reforms,the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), Triple Talaq law and the integration of the people of Jammu and Kashmir with mainstream development (abrogation of Article 370) .
PM Modi ended his address with a Sanskrit ‘shloka’ which means “our achievement of a goal depends upon whether we are truly determined to achieve it or not.”
“Today we have the means as well as the determination to achieve our goals,” he said.
