States and State LegislaturesMadhya Pradesh Government’s Response to COVID-19 (January 2020- April 17, 2020)Madhunika Iyer- April 18, 2020As of April 17, Madhya Pradesh has 1,120confirmed casesof COVID-19 - the fifth-highest among all states in India.  The Government of Madhya Pradesh issued one of its initial COVID-19 relatedordersaround January 28, 2020, advising healthcare workers to use appropriate protective gear when examining patients from Wuhan, China.   Since then, the government has taken several actions to contain the spread and impact of COVID-19.  In this blog, we look at key measures taken so far.Figure 1: Day-wise COVID-19 cases in Madhya PradeshEarly stages: Focus on screening international travellersOn January 28, the state government issueddirectionsto monitor international travellers from specified countries, test and maintain surveillance on those who are symptomatic.  A furtherorderrequired district administrators to monitor and report on all passengers who arrived from China between December 31, 2019 and January 29, 2020.  While efforts were largely focused on screening and testing, the first quarantine restrictions for symptomatic travellers from China, entering India after January 15, wereimposedon January 31.  Those leaving quarantine were subsequently kept undersurveillanceand their health conditions reported on for a period of 14 days.  ByFebruary 13, a constant presence of a medical team at the airport was required to test foreign passengers from an increasing list of countries and send daily reports.February and early March: Improving public health capacity, restricting social gatheringsThe next steps from the government were aimed towards adapting the public health infrastructure to handle the evolving situation.  Following are some of the steps taken in this regard:A helpline, with a dedicatedcall centre,was set up to inform citizens about COVID-19 and its prevention.The regional directors of the Directorate of Health Services, Government of Madhya Pradesh, wereinstructedto ensure availability of N-95 masks and PPE kits in their region.The Health Department issuedguidelinesto the Chief Medical and Health Officials in the State regarding the collection and transport of COVID-19 test samples.Medical professionals in public hospitals wereorderedto attend anational training.Anorderwas issued to improve arrangements for quarantine and isolation wards.Leaves were cancelledfor all employees/officers of the Health Department.To grant certain rights to establish effective control over outbreak affected areas and take swift actions, section 71 of the Madhya Pradesh Public Health Act, 1949 wasinvoked.  This section of the Act provides all Chief Medical and Health Officers and Civil Surgeon cum Chief Hospital Superintendents rights set out therein.As the number of cases in India increased through March, the MP government turned focus and issued orders directly concerning their citizens.   Several measures were undertaken to spread awareness about COVID-19 and implement social distancing.Adedicated portalwas created for COVID-19 related information.Anorderwas issued to close several establishments including schools, colleges, cinema halls, gyms and swimming pools.  Biometric attendance was stopped at all government workplaces.On March 20, the government issued anorder(effective till June 15) requiring suppliers of masks and sanitizers to: (i) maintain a fixed price and (ii) keep and present fortnightly, a record of purchase and sales of the essential items.  The order also prevented them from refusing to sell to any customer.March 21 OnwardsOn March 21, MP reported four cases of COVID-19. On March 23, the government released theMadhya Pradesh Epidemic Diseases, COVID-19 Regulations 2020to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the state.  These regulations specify special administrative powers and protocol for hospitals (government and private) to follow while treating COVID-19 patients. These regulations are valid for one year. Over and above general instructions to maintain social distancing and personal hygiene, the government has undertaken specific measures to: (i) increase healthcare capacity, (ii) institute welfare protection for the economically vulnerable population, (iii) strengthen the administrative structure and data collection, and (iv) ensure supply of essential goods and services.  These measures include-Healthcare measuresPreparationof hospitals for the treatment of COVID-19 including postponing elective surgeries, ensuring an adequate supply of PPE kits.On March 28, the Bhopal Memorial Hospital and Research Centre wasdesignatedas a state-level COVID-19 hospital.  This order wasreversedon April 15.District collectors wereempoweredto appoint doctors and other healthcare workers as required in their districts in a fast-tracked manner.Establishinga telemedicine unit in each of the 51 district hospitalsFacilitatingthe appointment of final year undergraduate nursing students as nursesOn March 29, the governmentlaunchedthe SAARTHAK app for daily monitoring and tracking of quarantined and corona positive patientsThe government released a strategy document to contain COVID-19. This strategy places emphasis on identification of suspected cases, isolation, testing of high-risk contacts, and treatment (called theI. I. T. T. strategy)Welfare measuresOne-timefinancial assistanceof Rs 1,000 will be provided to construction labourersOne-timefinancial assistanceof Rs 2,000 will be provided to families of Sahariya, Baiga and Bharia tribesSocial security pensions for two months will be paid inadvanceto pensionersPeople without eligibility slips under the National Food Security Scheme to beallowedto receive rationAdministrative measuresSenior officials weredesignatedto coordinate with various states to resolve issues regardingmigrant labour.District Crisis Management groups wereformedto coordinate state-level policy and the local implementation machinery.Supply of essential goods and servicesOn April 8, the governmentimplementedtheEssential Services Management Act,1979. The Act among other things, prohibits anyone employed in essential services to refuse to work.E-pass procurement facility wasstartedto ensure smooth inter-district and across states flow of essential goods & services.For more information on the spread of COVID-19 and the central and state government response to the pandemic, please seehere.ParliamentFirst no-confidence motion of the 17th Lok Sabha discussed todayNiranjana Menon- August 8, 2023Discussion on the first no-confidence motion of the 17thLok Sabha began today.  No-confidence motions and confidence motions are trust votes, used to test or demonstrate the support of Lok Sabha for the government in power.  Article 75(3) of the Constitution states that the government is collectively responsible to Lok Sabha.  This means that the government must always enjoy the support of a majority of the members of Lok Sabha.  Trust votes are used to examine this support.  The government resigns if a majority of members support a no-confidence motion, or reject a confidence motion.So far, 28 no-confidence motions (including the one being discussed today) and 11 confidence motions have beendiscussed.  Over the years, the number of such motions has reduced.  The mid-1960s and mid-1970s saw more no-confidence motions, whereas the 1990s saw more confidence motions.Figure1: Trust votes in ParliamentNote: *Term shorter than 5 years; **6-year term.Source: Statistical Handbook 2021, Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs; PRS.The no-confidence motion being discussed today wasmovedon July 26, 2023.  A motion of no-confidence is moved with the support of at least 50 members.   The Speaker has the discretion to allot time for discussion of the motion.  TheRules of Procedurestate that the motion must be discussed within 10 days of being introduced.  This year, the no-confidence motion wasdiscussed13 calendar days after introduction.  Since the introduction of the no-confidence motion on July 26, 12 Bills have been introduced and 18 Bills have been passed by Lok Sabha.  In the past, on four occasions, the discussion on no-confidence motions began seven days after their introduction.  On these occasions, Bills and other important issues were debated before the discussion on the no-confidence motion began.Figure2: Members rise in support of the motion of no-confidence in Lok SabhaSource: Sansad TV, Lok Sabha, July 26, 2023; PRS.Figure3: Number of days from introduction to discussion on no-confidence motionsNote: Number of days implies calendar days.Source: Statistical Handbook 2021, Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs; PRS.On average, no-confidence motions (excluding the one being discussed today) have been discussed for 13 hours over three days.  Discussions have lasted longer than 20 hours on four instances, most recently in 2003.  Today’s no-confidence motion was allotted 12 hours discussion time by theBusiness Advisory Committee.Following the discussion, the motion is put to vote.  26 out of 27 no-confidence motions (excluding the one being discussed today) have been voted upon and rejected.  This means that no government has ever had to resign following a vote of no-confidence.   On one occasion, in 1979, the discussion on a no-confidence motion against the Morarji Desai government remained inconclusive.  He resigned before the motion was put to vote.  50% of all no-confidence motions (14 out of 28) were discussed between 1965 and 1975.  Of these, 12 were against governments headed by Indira Gandhi.Figure4: Duration of discussion on no-confidence motionsNote: This graph excludes the no confidence motion moved on July 26, 2023.Source: Statistical Handbook 2021, Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs; PRS.In comparison, confidence motions have a more varied history.  The first motion, brought in 1979 to demonstrate confidence in Charan Singh’s government, was not discussed at all.  The Prime Minister resigned before the discussion could take place.  Since then, 11 confidence motions have been discussed in Lok Sabha, with nine occurring in the 1990s.  During this period, several coalition governments were formed, and Prime Ministers sought to prove their majority throughconfidence motions.   These motions have been discussed, on average, for 12 hours over two days.Figure5: Duration of discussion of confidence motionsSource: Statistical Handbook 2021, Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs; PRS.Of the 11 confidence motions discussed in Lok Sabha, seven were accepted.  On three instances, governments had to resign as they could not prove that they had the support of the majority.  On one instance in 1996, the motion was not put to vote.  Following an eleven-hour discussion on this confidence motion, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee announced his intention to resign on the floor of the House.  He resigned 16 days into his term.Vajpayee became Prime Minister again in 1999, and faced another confidence motion.   This time, it was put to vote.   The motion was defeated by a margin of one vote.  This has been the closest result on a trust vote in the history of Lok Sabha.  The next closest result was when a motion of no-confidence against P V Narasimha Rao’s government was defeated by 14 votes in 1993.  In most cases, results have been in favour of the government by a large margin.«12345678910»
States and State LegislaturesMadhya Pradesh Government’s Response to COVID-19 (January 2020- April 17, 2020)Madhunika Iyer- April 18, 2020