Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Monday said that the primary responsibility of the legislature is to fulfil the aspirations of the people while laws should be enacted after thorough debate and discussion.
He was speaking at the inaugural session of the 8th CPA India region conference organised in Guwahati.
"It is important that laws should be made after thorough debate and discussion incorporating the needs of the aspirational sections of the society. Democratic institutions from Panchayat to Parliament should follow this," Birla said.
Calling for active participation of youth and women in democratic processes, the Lok Sabha Speaker said that it is needed to keep the youth and women at the centre of policymaking to ensure "greater accountability of the Executive".
In this regard, Birla highlighted the need for organizing youth parliaments by democratic institutions at every level. Their energy, ability, confidence, technical knowledge and innovation skills will strengthen democracy.
Referring to Dr Bhimarao Ambedkar and Jyotirao Phule, he said that our policies and programmes should be in the direction of achieving the goals set by the founding fathers of the Constitution.
"The vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his comprehensive action on education, health, infrastructure and other areas are remarkable steps in this direction," he said.
On this occasion, Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma said that democracy and democratic values are integral parts of the Indian way of life. Democratic institutions are flourishing in India since ancient times and our reformer exemplified the true democratic values and tradition which continue unabated in our society till today, he added.
He further said that during the last eight decades, Assam Legislative Assembly has witnessed many historic debates.
The Chief Minister also said that in modern democracies, people expect a lot from the elected representatives.
"People want us to be their voice and the guardian. This bestows responsibilities on the legislators to address the fundamental issues affecting people's lives as well as fulfilling their dreams and aspirations," Sarma said.
"Through active participation in the debates in the House, legislators not just can bring into focus different aspects of the bills under discussion but at the same time they can be the champion of upholding the democratic rights by giving unprecedented momentum to their welfare and development," Sarma added.
Acting Chairperson of CPA, Ian Liddell-Grainger, MP, UK enumerated several path-breaking initiatives of CPA and hoped that the deliberations of the mid-year Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Executive Committee in Guwahati would go a long way in shaping strategies for global issues.
The theme of the conference is "Strengthening Legislative Oversight to help Optimise Development Outcome for the Aspirational Sections of Society".
( With inputs from ANI )
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