Q. Which one of the following is the largest Committee of the Parliament?
- The Committee on Public Accounts
- The Committee on Estimates
- The Committee on Public Undertakings
- The Committee on Petitions
Answer: (b) The Committee on Estimates
Parliament Committees:
- A Parliamentary committee is a committee of Members of Parliament (MPs) who are elected or appointed from amongst the members of the house or nominated by the Speaker or Chairman.
- The concept of Parliamentary committees originated in the British Parliament.
- These committees operate under the direction of the Speaker of Lok Sabha or Chairman of Rajya Sabha and present their findings and recommendations to the respective houses.
- The Parliamentary committees draw their authority from the constitution.
- Article 105: Powers, privileges, etc., of the houses of Parliament and of the members and committees thereof.
- Article 118: Each House of Parliament may make rules for regulations, subject to the provisions of this constitution, its procedure and the conduct of its business.
- India’s Parliament has multiple types of committees. They can be differentiated on the basis of their work, their membership and the length of their tenure.
- However, broadly there are two types of Parliamentary Committees– Standing Committees and Ad Hoc Committees.
- The Standing Committees are permanent (constituted every year or periodically) and work on a continuous basis.
- Standing Committees can be classified into the following six categories:
- Financial Committees
- Departmental Standing Committees
- Committees to Enquire
- Committees to Scrutinise and Control
- Committees Relating to the Day-to-Day Business of the House
- House-Keeping Committees or Service Committees
- Standing Committees can be classified into the following six categories:
- While the Ad Hoc Committees are temporary and cease to exist on completion of the task assigned to them.
- They are further subdivided into Inquiry Committees and Advisory Committees.
- The principal Ad hoc Committees are the Select and Joint Committees on Bills.
- The Standing Committees are permanent (constituted every year or periodically) and work on a continuous basis.
The Estimates Committee
- The Estimates Committee is the largest Committee of the Parliament.
- It has a total of 30 members and all are from the Lok Sabha.
- Rajya Sabha has no representation in this committee.
- The function of the estimates committee is to make scrutiny of the functioning of government ministries and departments regarding the expenditure and utilisation of funds.
Other committees:
- The Public Accounts Committee consists of 22 members out of which 15 members are elected by Lok Sabha and 7 Members of the Rajya Sabha are associated with it.
- The Committee on Public Undertakings consists of not more than 22 Members out of which 15 are elected by the Lok Sabha and 7 by the Rajya Sabha.
- The Committee on Petitions consists of 10 members.