New Delhi, Jun 20: Seven-term parliamentarian Bhartruhari Mahtab was on Thursday appointed pro-tem Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said.

He said Mahtab, a BJP member from Cuttack, was appointed as pro-tem Speaker by President Droupadi Murmu under Article 95(1) of the Constitution to perform the duties of the Lok Sabha presiding officer till the election of the Speaker.

The newly elected members of the 18th Lok Sabha will make oath or affirmation before the pro-tem Speaker, who will be assisted by a panel of chairpersons comprising Congress leader K Suresh, DMK leader T R Baalu, BJP members Radha Mohan Singh and Faggan Singh Kulaste and TMC leader Sudip Bandyopadyay.

Mathab quit the BJD ahead of the Lok Sabha elections to join the BJP.

The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha will begin on June 24. The newly elected members will take oath/affirmation on June 24-25.

The election of the Speaker is scheduled to take place on June 26.

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Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.

The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.

Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.

The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.

Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.

The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.