BJP and AAP MLAs congratulated Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta for making the House proceedings paperless, though AAP members also questioned the absence of the Question Hour as the Monsoon Session began here on Monday.
The Delhi Assembly also marked a milestone in environmental sustainability and digital governance by becoming the first legislature in the country to run entirely on solar energy. The Delhi Assembly has implemented National e-Vidhan Application (NeVA), a flagship project of the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs designed to create a paperless legislative environment across India.
Many legislators, including Leader of Opposition Atishi, congratulated Gupta on the twin initiatives. The Delhi Assembly also congratulated the Indian cricket team for winning the fifth and final Oval Test against England and levelling the five-match series 2-2.
BJP MLA from Jangpura Tarvinder Singh Marwah said, “This should have been done earlier by the previous government but due to corruption, it could not be done.”
Malviya Nagar MLA Satish Upadhyay said Gupta has not only made the Assembly paperless but given everyone such a good training “that we all would be able to work without any hassle”.
Former Delhi chief minister Atishi, while praising the initiatives, questioned Gupta over the removal of Question Hour in the session. AAP MLA Kuldeep Kumar echoed similar views.
Deputy Speaker Mohan Singh Bisht said, “The Speaker deserves congratulations for making the Assembly paperless. Opposition members blame that they don’t get time to speak in the Assembly. But all the data of speakers, like who spoke for how much time, will be shown on the screen, making our system bias-less.”
Delhi Minister Ravinder Singh Indraj also congratulated the Speaker.
The twin initiatives were inaugurated by Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Sunday.
Speaker Gupta said, “I am happy that we have fulfilled our goal of making the Assembly paperless as we decided in the last session in April. I want to thank the chief minister and other members because it has become possible only because of the efforts of everyone.”
The digital interface includes smart delegate units with microphones and voting panels, RFID/NFC access, multilingual support, real-time document access via iPads, an automated AV system with HD cameras, and a secure, power-backed networking environment.
