Rajya Sabha’s Select Committee on Insurance laws (Amendment) Bill, 2008, met on Wednesday to hold clause-by-clause deliberation on the crucial Bill that seeks to increase Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) limit in the insurance sector to 49 per cent from the existing 26 per cent. The last meeting of the committee will be held on December 8 to approve the draft of the Bill.
“Today several members gave a lot of suggestions. We will try to accommodate as much as possible without affecting the fundamental provisions of the Bill. We will submit the report after December 8 to the Chairman of Rajya Sabha,” said Chandan Mitra, chairman of the Select Committee.
The committee was to submit its report on November 28, but it was given a two-week extension after two of its members — JP Nadda and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi — became Cabinet Ministers. They were replaced with VP Singh Bhadnor and R Ramakrishna of the BJP. The term of this committee ends on December 12.
Sources said the differences between the BJP and the Congress seem to have narrowed down substantially over the proposed amendments in the Bill. It is learnt that the Select committee has accepted several amendments suggested by the UPA and other members. The Government plans to bring the Bill for passage in the Winter Session itself and the party floor managers are working to build support for it.