Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar assures women MPs of interactive space in new Parliament

NEW DELHI:

Rajya Sabha chairman

Jagdeep Dhankhar is learnt to have assured some women members in the Upper House, to look into the possibility of creating an interactive space for members from both Houses in the absence of a Central Hall in the

new Parliament building

.
The assurance came when a group of 10 women members from the opposition benches approached the Chairman on Wednesday morning with a list of demands to address several difficulties and discomforts that members have been facing in the newly built parliament house.
Rajya Sabha MPs -- Dola Sen and Mausam Noor from TMC, Priyanka Chaturvedi (Shiv Sena-UBT) Kanimozhi Somu (DMK), Fauzia Khan (NCP-Sharad Pawar), Sulata Dev (BJD) and Congress’ Renuka Chowdhury, Rajni Patil, Ranjeet Ranjan and Jebi Mather – urged Dhankhar to address issues including those of clean toilets, availability of water, tea and coffee for members, privacy, chairs or sofas for resting, ferry vehicles, cover over the stairway to the House from heat and rain and a space where members from both Houses can interact, like the Central Hall in the old parliament building.
The chairman not just gave us time but heard all our demands and made a note of them himself in the morning. He then called the secretary general and asked him to address most of our issues, coordinate with the Lok Sabha secretariat, except the Central Hall type space, which he said he will take up himself with the Lok Sabha Speaker,” Sen told TOI when asked about it.

In fact, Dhankhar called the

women MPs

back at 5 pm on Wednesday and assured that “if not all at least most of the issues will be resolved within 72 hours,” Sen added.
The MPs, clearly missing the Central Hall, which was the hub of interaction among them, have suggested that atrium that connects the Lok Sabha canteen and the Rajya Sabha canteen could be turned into a space for interaction between members of both houses. “At present the members of the two houses hardly meet since they are confined to their respective canteen areas. So many new members in both houses don’t even know each other, we told the Chairman,” Sen said, adding that “I mentioned that even senior journalists should be allowed in that space as we have to stand out in the sun to talk to them.”
The members have complained that toilet and kitchen are in close vicinity, crammed and unclean. At least a wooden partition in the lounge needs to be to be arranged for, to allow privacy when members are talking, since the staff members are also around in the same area. Some tea and coffee vending machines are required in the lounge. Sofas or sitting arrangement in the corridor or House lobby is required especially for elderly members as it is long walk from the House to the lounge. Number of ferry cars need to increased and that a shade is needed for the stairway to the House gates to protect from the rains and the heat. “The metal railings get so hot during summers that one cannot touch it, whereas there are many people who need to hold while climbing,” Sen explained.