First zero hour held in Himachal Pradesh Assembly 7 legislators raise issues

Dharamshala (HP) Dec 20 (PTI) The first ever zero hour was held in the Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha on Friday during which 7 legislators raised issues of public concern.
     Congress MLA from Lahaul and Spiti, Anuradha Rana was the first legislator to raise an issue during the zero hour, held between 12:00 and 12:30 pm in the state assembly.
     She talked about two toll tax barriers in her constituency.
     Other lawmakers who raised issues during the zero hour included BJP MLAs Janak Raj, Sukhram Chaudhary, and Trilok Jamwal, as well as Congress MLAs Kewal Singh Pathania, Sanjay Rattan, and Hardip Singh Baba.
     They spoke about various issues like the burial of water canals due to NHAI construction in Shahpur, cloudbursts, the construction of a freedom fighter memorial, criteria for forming new gram panchayats, and a bottling plant affecting water schemes.
     The zero hour allows MLAs to raise public interest issues and must notify the assembly secretary at least 90 minutes before the session begins if they wish to participate, said Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania.
     The initiative was also praised by Leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur, who requested guidance for members, while Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi called it a milestone in the state's legislative history and urged members to use the platform effectively.
     Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri congratulated the Speaker for introducing NeVA (National e-Vidhan Application) and the zero hour during the winter session.
     The four-day winter session of the Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha commenced on Wednesday at the Tapovan campus in Dharamshala.
     The question hour and zero hour were not held on the first two days of the winter session due to discussions on corruption under the Rule 67 adjournment motion brought by the opposition in the assembly on Wednesday.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)