Private member bills to empower beggars, control population, preserve secularism introduced in Lok Sabha

New Delhi, Feb 4: Over 66 private member bills were introduced in the Lok Sabha on Friday, including some seeking to empower beggars, preserve secularism, control population and provide for a compulsory donation of surplus food packets by supermarkets.

BJP MP Kirit Solanki introduced a bill to provide rights, welfare and social security to the online platform delivery personnel, while his party colleague Varun Gandhi introduced another bill to provide for a compulsory donation of surplus food packets by supermarkets and the creation of an institutional mechanism for monitoring and implementing the process.

Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Sougata Roy moved a private member bill to ensure preservation of secularism and communal harmony in the country for a peaceful life for all communities irrespective of caste, religion or region, while Congress MP Shashi Tharoor moved a bill to provide for the establishment of an effective system to protect refugees and asylum-seekers by means of an appropriate legal framework to determine claims for asylum.

BJP's Nishikant Dubey introduced a bill to provide for measures to control the country's population. JD(U) MP Alok Kumar Suman moved a bill to empower beggars to lead a life of dignity through skill development by imparting them compulsory vocational training and launching programmes for their rehabilitation and to enable them towards self-sustainable livelihood.

A total of 70 private member bills were introduced for consideration in the Lok Sabha. Usually, on Fridays, members from various political parties are given an opportunity to introduce bills on subjects on which they think there should be a law. These bills are debated and later withdrawn by the members. However, there have been rare occasions when a private member bill has been passed by the House. PTI