Modi lays foundation stone of Vanijya Bhawan

Vartha Bharati | 22-06-2018 | 15:29:00 IST

New Delhi, June 22: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday laid the foundation stone of Vanijya Bhawan at Akbar Road here and said India has made great progress in making the country investment friendly.

After laying the foundation stone, Modi said the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has transformed the way trade is done in the country in less than one year. More than one crore have already registered with the GST, he said.

The Bhawan, which is likely to be ready by December 2019, will be a completely networked and paperless office equipped with smart access control.

"Happy that PM Narendra Modi Ji has laid the foundation stone to Vanijya Bhawan. Once completed, the building will be a modern, eco-friendly structure with its entire roof used for solar power generation, zero waste discharge, offering universal accessibility," Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu tweeted.

The Bhawan will comprise the Minister's room, 85 cabins for senior officers, 19 meeting rooms with seating capacities ranging from 10 to 100, library and more than 1,000 workstations.

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Time has come to implement Women's Reservation Act: PM Modi's letter to LS, RS floor leaders

12-04-2026 ¦ 12-04-2026 IST

Prime Minister Narendra Modi (PTI)

New Delhi (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the time has come for the implementation of the Women's Reservation Act in its true spirit and the 2029 Lok Sabha elections and Assembly elections are conducted with the quota for women in place.

In a letter to the floor leaders of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, ahead of the three-day special sittings of Parliament, Modi also asked all members to come together in one voice to pass the amendments to the women's reservation law, officially known as Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam.

"After extensive deliberations, we have reached the conclusion that the time has now come to implement the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam in its true spirit across the country.

"It is imperative that the 2029 Lok Sabha elections and Assembly elections are conducted with women's reservation in place," the Prime Minister said in his letter dated April 11.

The Budget Session of Parliament has been extended, and a special three-day sitting of the House has been convened on April 16 to 18.

The Women's Reservation Act will ensure an increase in the number of Lok Sabha seats to 816, of which 273 will be reserved for women.

The provision to provide 33 per cent reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies was brought by amending the Constitution in 2023.

However, the women's quota would have come into effect only after the completion of the delimitation exercise on the basis of the 2027 Census. This meant the reservation would not have become enforceable before 2034 if the present law remains as is.

To implement it from the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, changes were needed in the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam; hence, the government is holding a special session to pass the amendments to the law.