Dhaka: The parliament will go into session on Wednesday for the national budget for fiscal year 2020-21 as Bangladesh grapples with a worsening coronavirus epidemic.

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal will place the proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year before parliament on Thursday.

The budget session will open at 5 pm on Wednesday and is likely to continue for 12-15 working days, ending on Jul 9, according to an official of the Parliament Secretariat.

As part of the precautionary measures against COVID-19, media and visitors will not be allowed entry into parliament for the session.

Parliament staffers who will be working during the session have through COVID-19 test, 43 of whom tested positive.

Elderly and physically unwell parliamentarians have been discouraged from attending the session.

To ensure the health and safety of lawmakers, the authorities may temporarily change the seating arrangement in the house for the upcoming session. Several seats around Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will be left empty.

The whips are working on an itinerary for the MPs after they prepared a seating plan in a meeting led the chief whip.

Safe distancing rules will be emphasised in the seating arrangement, said Deputy Secretary Nazmul Haque.

The parliament session will likely be attended by 80 to 90 lawmakers to limit the risk of contagion.

The budget presentation will not be followed by a question and answer session this time.

Traffic will be regulated in the Jatiya Sansad Bhaban area during the session.

A press release by Dhaka Metropolitan Police on Monday said carrying weapons, explosives, or other harmful and objectionable things and holding gatherings, rallies, processions, or protests will be strictly prohibited from the night before the session from 12 am on Jun 9.

https://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2020/06/09/bangladesh-parliament-to-convene-wednesday-for-budget-session