Parliament It is likely to shrink and end by the middle of next week in view of the threat of the spread of Covid-19 among MPs, sources said on Saturday.
At a meeting of the Lok Sabha business advisory committee, which has leaders from all parties in addition to government representatives and is chaired by the president, the majority of political parties favored the session reduction.
The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs will make a final decision.
The Monsoon session began on September 14 and is scheduled to end on October 1.
The government wanted to incorporate all parties and also to get Parliament to pass 11 ordinances into law before making a final decision, the sources added.
The Lok Sabha has so far passed three bills to replace ordinances related to the agricultural sector. In addition, both Houses approved an ordinance to reduce the salaries of members of Parliament by 30 percent to increase funds in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sources said that amid some members of Parliament who tested positive for Covid-19 during the session, opposition parties told the government that running the full 18-day session could be a risky business.
Then the government began to think in that direction, the sources said.
Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Prahlad Patel tested positive for Covid-19. Both had attended the ongoing session that began on September 14.
Several MPs had tested positive for Covid-19 at the time the session began and were advised not to attend the proceedings.
To prevent the spread of the coronavirus within the Parliament compound, reporters and parliamentary staff entering the premises must now undergo mandatory rapid antigen testing every day, according to a new established protocol.
Members of both Houses undergo RT-PCR testing at regular intervals on a voluntary basis, said a senior Parliament official.
Both Houses are meeting in shifts of four hours each without the usual weekend break from Saturday to Sunday.
The Budget Session ended briefly in March after the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
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