Budget Session of Parliament begins

New Delhi, July 22: The Monsoon Session of Parliament commenced on Monday, marking the first day of the inaugural budget session of the 18th Lok Sabha.

This session, primarily focused on the Budget and related financial business, is scheduled for 16 sittings and is expected to conclude on August 12.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to present the Union Budget on Tuesday.

Additionally, at least six bills are anticipated to be introduced during the session.

Today, Finance Minister Sitharaman tabled the Economic Survey 2023-24, along with a statistical appendix, in the Lok Sabha, setting the stage for the highly-anticipated Union Budget 2024 presentation.

During the Question Hour in the Lok Sabha, Opposition leaders, including Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party MP Akhilesh Yadav, questioned Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan regarding the NEET-UG paper leak case.

They demanded to know if he would take responsibility and resign.

Pradhan said that "this is not a nationwide paper leak" and asserted, "The government has nothing to hide and has put out all facts."

Responding to questions about the National Testing Agency (NTA) and the conduct of NEET-UG, the government said that there was only a "likely breach of chain of custody" of the question paper in one instance and no evidence of a large-scale breach of confidentiality in the pan-India examination.

Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that an FIR was registered in only one instance, in Patna, alleging the leak.

The ministry complained to the CBI, which registered an FIR in the matter on June 23.

"The Ministry of Education has asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the alleged irregularities, including conspiracy, cheating, and breach of trust," Union Minister of State for Education said in a written response.