Russia and India: deepening inter-parliamentary contacts.
Joint steps to create a more balanced and fair world order Vyacheslav Volodin will discuss during his visit to India.
On the eve of the important for bilateral relations visit of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin to India on December 9-10, India’s Ambassador to Russia Mr. Datla Bal Venkatesh Varma told the Parliamentary Newspaper how their legislators work, what is worth adding to the bilateral inter-parliamentary dialogue, and why New -Deli against the use of unilateral sanctions.
- Dear Mr. Ambassador, please tell us about the Parliament of India, what role does it play in the life of the country, how is it formed?
- First of all I want to say that the Indian Parliament represents the largest democracy in the world. It consists of two chambers, which is similar to the Russian system. The lower house, called Lok Sabha, consists of 545 seats. Its members are representatives directly elected by the people. The upper house - Rajya Sabha, in her 245 seats, which are occupied by representatives of the states of India.
Each of the chambers has its own competence, but together they control and govern the country on the basis of democracy.
The Prime Minister and the Government of India should have a majority in the Lok Sabha.
- India is the largest democracy in the world, and what number of voters use this boon?
- In the general elections in 2014, 814 million voters took part, with a total population of 1.3 billion.
The next general elections in India are scheduled for 2019, and it is expected that 850 million voters will take part in them. They can vote in more than a million polling stations.
By the way, elections in India usually take place after the end of the school exam period, because polling stations open mainly in school buildings.- Does such a number of voters seriously affect the organizational issues of the voting procedure?
- All plots in India are equipped with electronic urns. At the same time, the preparation procedure for the elections can take up to two months, largely due to the size of the country.
However, at the end of the voting, the results are announced after one or two days thanks to the same ballot boxes in the polling stations.- In what direction is Russian-Indian cooperation developing along the lines of parliaments ?
- First of all, I note that there is regular contact between India and Russia at the leadership level of parliaments. The speaker Lok Sabha of the Indian Parliament, Mrs. Sumitra Mahajan, visited Russia in 2017 on an official visit. In addition, our contacts are developing through a specially created inter-parliamentary commission, which meets regularly. By the way, in the framework of the upcoming visit of Vyacheslav Volodin to India, the Fifth meeting of the bilateral inter-parliamentary committee will be held. I think this is a great tradition that provides an opportunity for both parties to listen to each other and speak out on important topics.
- Mr. Ambassador, what exactly is planned to discuss during the upcoming visit of Vyacheslav Volodin to India?
- We expect serious positive results from the visit to our country, Vyacheslav Volodin. Scheduled rich program. So, he will meet with the Speaker of the Loch Sabha Sumitra Mahajan. She, by the way, is considered one of the most experienced parliamentarians in India.
Topics to be discussed include topical international issues, interaction within the framework of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, cooperation in BRICS and the SCO. In addition, the parties will exchange views on information technology, the development of economic relations, the digital economy, education and health care. Separately, I will note the theme of the development of contacts among young parliamentarians. During the visit of Vyacheslav Volodin, he will also be told in detail about the program of celebrating the 150th anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi in 2018-2019. A number of meetings with Indian parliamentarians are planned, as well as an event with the participation of the Indo-Russian Parliamentary Friendship Group.I note that today there is an obvious interest in establishing working contacts between the international affairs committees of our parliaments.
- The situation in the modern world is unstable and unpredictable. What can India and Russia do together to preserve calm and peace on the planet?
- An important element of our friendship is economic cooperation. The fact that it needs to be developed, strengthened and diversified, says the leaders of Russia and India. And I can assure you that a number of steps in this direction have already been taken.
As for international politics, I note that India does not support unilateral sanctions. New Delhi regards only sanctions within the UN as permissible.
India proceeds from the need for a joint search for approaches to work with the existing complex world situation. As a concrete example, I can mention plans to expand the use of national currencies in calculations, which is becoming an ever more pressing requirement of today.
Against the background of the difficult world situation, India and Russia are looking for new opportunities for cooperation, for this we are in constant contact. Our countries use for this purpose bilateral relations and already existing international formats, for example, BRICS. And most recently, on the "fields" of the just-concluded G20 in Buenos Aires, the leaders of our countries, President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi , held talks and a meeting in the RIC format (Russia, India, China).
India proceeds from the need for a joint search for approaches to work with the existing complex world situation.
During the upcoming visit to India, Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin from the Indian side will receive confirmation of the thesis that our countries uphold the principle of a multipolar world based on peaceful coexistence, international law and supporting such multinational institutions like the UN and WTO.
- Thank you, Mr. Ambassador, for taking the time to meet!
- First of all, I thank for this opportunity to talk with the readers of the “Parliamentary newspaper” on the eve of a very important event - the visit to India of the State Duma of the Russian Federation Vyacheslav Volodin. The Parliamentary Newspaper is a respected publication read by legislators and politicians in the regions. Therefore, I send my regards and best wishes to your readers from the Embassy of India and the Indian Government. In addition, I express my warmest wishes to the Russian parliamentarians. And given the approach of the New Year, I congratulate everyone on this upcoming holiday!
