Highlights of 2018: Budget Session of Parliament

The first leg of the budget session of the Parliament begins on January 29 and will go on until February 9. The Economic Survey is presented today and the Union Budget will be presented on February 1. The second leg of the session will run from March 5 to April 6.

The all-party meeting was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union ministers Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley and Ananth Kumar, besides leaders of the opposition and other parties.

Here are the highlights of the 1st session:

• Baba Saheb Ambedkar had said that without economic and social democracy, political democracy is unstable: President Kovind
• We will realise the dream of ‘New India’ in 2018, says President Kovind.
• It is our duty to make our country completely clean by the time we celebrate Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary in 2019: President Ram Nath Kovind
• President Kovind highlights the actions undertaken by the government, including approving a bill granting working woman paid maternity leave for 26 weeks.
• The government is committed to double the income of farmers by the year 2022: President
• 2.70 lakh Common Service Centres have been set up across the nation. These centres provide digital services at low rates, even in the far-off remote areas: President Ram Nath Kovind
• I hope the Triple Talaq Bill will be passed soon so that Muslim women can live a life of dignity and without fear: President
• To bring everyone closer to development, work under ‘Pradhanmantri Gram Sadak Yojana’ is being done speedily. In 2014 only 56% villages were connected by roads, today more than 82% villages have road connectivity with the majority being in remote areas: President Kovind
• Empowerment, and not appeasement of minorities, is our government’s mantra: President
• It is a matter of pride for us that UNESCO recognised Kumbh Mela as ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity’, says the President of India
• The government has increased minimum wage of labourers by more than 40 percent: President Ram Nath Kovind
• With help of Aadhaar, facilities are reaching poor beneficiaries directly without involvement of middlemen, says the President.
• There should be more discussion on simultaneous state and Lok Sabha elections: President Kovind
• Our fight against corruption is continuing. In the past one year, registration of about 350,000 suspicious companies have been cancelled: President
• I appreciate the soldiers and offer condolences to those who lost their lives in action. J&K Police, defence and paramilitary forces are working together to fight terrorism in J&K: President Ram Nath Kovind
• “Under the ‘Jan Dhan Yojana’, so far, about 31 crore bank accounts have been opened for the poor. Women have especially benefitted from the scheme with the percentage of savings bank accounts held by them going up to more than 40% from the earlier 28%.”

At the end of the session Economic survey records states that India’s economy to grow at 7-7.5 percent in 2018-19, from 6.75 2017-18. For now, Lok Sabha adjourned for the day; to meet on February 1 and Rajya Sabha is adjourned till February 1, 2018.

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