Most fruitful Budget session in legislative history: Minister

New Delhi, April 12 (IANS) Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.N. Ananth Kumar on Wednesday said the Budget session of Parliament that concluded earlier during the day has been very fruitful as both houses passed all financial bills before March 31.

"This Budget session has been very fruitful… in the last 70 years. This is for the first time in Indian legislative history that all financial business of the government has been completed before the start of the next financial year, and that too by following the due process of general discussion, scrutiny by Standing Committees," Ananth Kumar said.

"A total of 24 bills were introduced. Of these, the Lok Sabha passed a record 23 bills, including some very important ones, while the Rajya Sabha passed 14 bills. A total of 18 bills were passed by both the Houses," the Minister said.

He said the Union Budget 2017-18 has already come into effect from April 1, which is "unprecedented". Earlier, the Budget used to come into effect from July.

He said the productivity of the Lok Sabha has been 113 per cent and the Rajya Sabha’s 92 per cent.

The Minister appreciated the cooperation extended by the opposition in transaction of legislative business, but blamed the Congress for stalling a bill for grant of constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes.

The Lok Sabha passed the bill with consensus but the Rajya Sabha chose to refer it to a Select Committee. "With this, social justice for a large section of population is being delayed and the Congress is to be blamed," Ananth Kumar said.

He said that with the passage of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill in both houses, the prospects of its coming into effect from July have brightened.