Will request MPs to get tested for COVID-19 48 hours before start of the session: Om Birla

New Delhi: All parliament employees and MPs will be encouraged to undergo Covid-19 screening 48 hours before the start of the monsoon session on September 14.

Testing facilities will also be available inside Parliament House complex when the House is in session. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla chaired a meeting of officials from both Houses of Parliament, the health ministry and Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to review arrangements for the first Parliament session since a nationwide lockdown was imposed in March.

Randeep Guleria, director of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Indian Council of Medical Research director-general Balram Bhargav, and secretary (health) Rajesh Bhushan were present during the meeting.


According to sources, ministry officials briefed the Speaker on the necessary arrangements in view of Covid-19. These include sanitisation measures, seating plan, use of technology to sanitise briefcases and bags and corridors.The sources said that Parliament staff will function in shifts and officials will be encouraged to get themselves tested 48 hours before the session begins. Even MPs may be advised to undergo the test.