New Delhi, The West Bengal Legislative Assembly met for 166 days and functioned for 430 hours between 2021 and 2026, an average of 33 sittings a year, an analysis by PRS Legislative Research has said.
A note released by the thinktank also said 91 per cent of bills were introduced and passed on the same day, and no bill had been referred to a committee since 2011.
It said the assembly typically met in multiple sessions each year, commencing with the Budget Session, followed by additional sessions.
However, during the 17th Assembly, sessions were adjourned but not prorogued. As a result, a single session effectively continued from 2023 to 2026.
In the absence of prorogation, a session is deemed to be continuing, and pending business, including notices, bills, motions, and resolutions, does not lapse. The speaker may reconvene the House, and no new summons from the governor is required.
In 2024, the Governor’s Address, usually delivered at the commencement of the first session each year, was not delivered because the session was treated as a continuation of the Fourth Session, which began in 2023.
However, although the same session continued in 2025 and 2026, the governor addressed the House in those years
A total of 74 Bills were introduced during the period.
The Aparajita Woman and Child Bill, 2024, which strengthens penalties for sexual offences and the West Bengal Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Bill, 2022, which establishes an appeal mechanism against the cancellation or revocation of caste certificates, were two of the bills passed on the day of their introduction.
Another such bill was the West Bengal Clinical Establishments Bill, 2022, which strengthens the oversight and regulation of private healthcare facilities.
According to the PRS analysis, during the 17th Assembly, 62 per cent of bills received assent from the governor within three months of passing.
Bills that took more than three months to receive assent include amendments to university laws. These laws aimed to shift certain administrative powers in state universities from the governor to the state.
Three bills took more than a year to receive assent. One of these bills reduced the number of councillors in the Howrah Municipal Corporation from 66 to 50. Another transferred the power to appoint the chairperson and members of the Taxation Tribunal from the governor to the state government.
On financial business, the report said the state Budget was discussed for an average of six days.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
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