The Rajya Sabha discussed and passed four Bills on August 8 in the absence of Opposition members, who walked out over the Manipur violence.
In the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament, the Rajya Sabha has passed about a dozen Bills without contributions from the Opposition side as it boycotted the proceedings raising the Manipur crisis, except during the debate on the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, which was passed on Monday.
On Tuesday, the elders passed four Bills — the Interservices Organisations (Command, Control and Discipline) Bill; the Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill; the National Dental Commission Bill; and the National Nursing and Midwifery Commission Bill. The National Dental Commission Bill; and the National Nursing and Midwifery Commission Bill, piloted by Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, were discussed and passed together. The Lok Sabha had passed the Bills earlier.
The Interservices Organisations (Command, Control and Discipline) Bill is for establishing the powers of the commander-in-chief and officer-in-command of inter-services organisations. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, moving the Bill, said the country’s inter-services organisations will be able to work in a better way once the Bill becomes an Act. He said it will also help the defence forces keep in tune with the changing nature of modern warfare. “It [warfare] is not conventional now, it has become technology and network-centric... Considering the new challenges, which we and our forces are facing, there is a need for better coordination. This Bill has been brought for that purpose only,” Mr. Singh said.
‘No plan to interfere’
The IIM Bill, moved by Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, was to make President the Visitor of IIMs. Clarifying that the Centre has no intention to interfere in the autonomy or academic accountability of the IIMs, he said the Bill is for management accountability of the institutions. He added that the Centre had so far spent more than ₹6,000 crore on setting up the IIMs.
The House also passed the National Nursing and Midwifery Commission Bill, which provides for setting up the National Nursing and Midwifery Commission (NNMC). The Bill also repeals the Indian Nursing Council Act of 1947. The Bill, Mr. Mandaviya said, is for the regulation and maintenance of standards of education and services by nursing and midwifery professionals, assessment of institutions and maintenance of a national register as well as State registers.
The House also passed the National Dental Commission Bill. “These Bills are part of the government’s effort to improve quality of education in the healthcare sector, which includes nursing and dentistry,” Mr. Mandaviya added.
