Parliament's standing committees announced; Bhartruhari Mahtab to head panel on finance

The department-related standing committees, which have representation from across party lines, act as mini parliaments and keep a tab on the functioning of various ministries

The Indian Parliament’s department-related standing committees, which scrutinise the functioning of Union ministries, were constituted and finally announced on September 26.

While BJP's Bhartruhari Mahtab was named to helm the standing committee on Finance, Radha Mohan Singh will be heading the committee on defence. The crucial committees of external affairs and home will be chaired by Congress' Shashi Tharoor and BJP's Radha Mohan Das Agarwal, respectively.

Ex-minister Anurag Thakur will be heading the parliamentary panel on Coal, Mines and Steel, and the committee on education to be led by Congress' Digvijay Singh.

The notification of the committees was announced by a communique issued by the Rajya Sabha Secretariat.

The leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi is a member of the Committee on Defence. UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi's name does not figure in any of the committees.

Major BJP allies such as the TDP and Janata Dal (United) besides its partners in the poll-bound Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena and the NCP, will be heading one committee each.

The lone NCP Lok Sabha member Sunil Tatkare will be heading the panel on Petroleum and Natural Gas and Shiv Sena's Shrirang Appa Barne will helm the committee on Energy.

JD(U)'s Sanjay Jha will be heading the committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture while TDP's Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy will chair the committee on Housing and Urban Affairs. BJP member Nishikant Dubey has been made the chairman of the committee on Communications and Information Technology, while Rajiv Pratap Rudy will head the committee on water resources.

Congress members Charanjit Singh Channi and Saptagiri Ulaka have been made chairpersons of the committees on Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Food Processing; and Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, respectively.

DMK's Tiruchi Siva and K Kanimozhi will chair the committees on Industry; and Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution respectively.

Earlier this month, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju had said that department-related standing committees and consultative committees of Parliament will be constituted soon.

His remarks had come against the backdrop of certain opposition leaders questioning the delay in constituting standing committees, which scrutinise the functioning of Union ministries.

While a majority of the standing committees come under the Lok Sabha Secretariat, some are serviced by the Rajya Sabha.

The department-related standing committees, which have representation from across party lines, act as mini parliaments and keep a tab on the functioning of various ministries. They scrutinise ministries' budgetary allocations and bills introduced in Parliament. They also recommend the government to bring bills and make policies on important issues.

(With PTI inputs)