Governor has no authority to summon officers to discuss pending Bills: Bengal minister
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Kolkata (PTI): West Bengal's Parliamentary Affairs Minister Sovandeb Chattopadhyay said the governor does not have any authority to summon officers to discuss pending Bills.
Chattopadhyay's statement on Thursday came after Governor C.V. Ananda Bose said he has sought meetings with officers of different departments before approving some Bills that are pending with him.
"The Constitution clearly states that the governor does not have the power to indefinitely hold back Bills. If there are legal concerns with a Bill, the governor may write to the government. But nowhere does the Constitution say he can summon officials or hold discussions. I have read the Constitution many times," the minister said.
Following a Supreme Court verdict on the matter, Speaker Biman Banerjee said 23 Bills passed by the West Bengal Assembly since 2016 have not received the governor's assent.
In a major victory for the DMK-led Tamil Nadu government, the apex court on Tuesday cleared 10 Bills that were stalled and reserved by Governor R.N. Ravi for the President's consideration, and also set a timeline for all governors to act on the Bills passed by state assemblies.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin hailed the verdict as a "victory for all Indian states".
Echoing similar sentiments, Speaker Banerjee hoped that the West Bengal governor would follow suit.
In a statement, the Raj Bhavan said the governor had sent 11 Bills -- 10 related to state universities and the Aparajita Bill -- for consideration by the President between 2024 and 2025.
The Raj Bhavan also said that it has sought additional information from the state government on several other Bills, and claimed that appropriate responses have not been received.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
