BanglaPress Desk: The fourth session of the 13th National Parliament will conclude on November 18. Excluding public holidays (Fridays and Saturdays), the session will convene daily at 4:20 PM.
This decision was reached on Sunday (November 8) during the fifth meeting of the Business Advisory Committee, held at the National Parliament House.
The meeting took place in the Cabinet Room of the Parliament House, presided over by the Speaker of the National Parliament, Hafiz Uddin Ahmad, *Bir Bikrom*. It was attended by the Leader of the House—Prime Minister Tareque Rahman—and other members of the committee.
Also present at the meeting were Leader of the Opposition Dr. Md. Shafiqur Rahman, Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Minister for Finance and Planning Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, Minister for Home Affairs Salauddin Ahmad, Deputy Speaker Barrister Kaiser Kamal, Chief Whip Md. Nurul Islam Moni, Minister for Law Md. Asaduzzaman, A. T. M. Azharul Islam, and Opposition Chief Whip Md. Nahid Islam.
The meeting addressed the allocation of time for the proceedings of the fourth session and the overall duration of the session. The Speaker has been authorized to adjust the session timings and working days, should the need arise.
It was noted that one government bill has been received for introduction during this session. Additionally, three ordinances were promulgated in the interim between the third and fourth sessions: the Public Procurement (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026; the Value Added Tax and Supplementary Duty (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026; and the Special Solar Power Installation Ordinance, 2026. These ordinances will be presented during the first sitting of the session.
For this session, 174 questions have been submitted for the Prime Minister to answer, along with 3,577 questions directed at other ministers—bringing the total number of questions to 3,751. Furthermore, 92 notices for 'attention-drawing' motions (under Rule 71) and 281 notices for substantive motions (under Rule 131) have been received.
During the meeting, Prime Minister Tareque Rahman proposed declaring the National Parliament premises a smoke-free zone. The members present spontaneously accepted the proposal.
During the meeting, the Prime Minister inquired about the progress of the Parliament’s sound system. Parliament Secretary Barrister Md. Golam Sarwar Bhuiyan informed that the sound system, under the supervision of the Public Works Department, would be inaugurated tomorrow at 3:30 PM.
The progress regarding the installation of solar power panels at the National Parliament was also discussed. Deputy Speaker Barrister Kaiser Kamal stated that it would be possible to generate 7 megawatts of electricity from solar power. During parliamentary sessions, this would meet the demand of approximately 6 megawatts, with the surplus electricity being fed into the national grid. The Prime Minister directed that provisions for electricity storage be included in the solar power generation system.
During the meeting, the Deputy Speaker provided an update on the 'e-Parliament' initiative and the latest progress regarding the recruitment of personnel for vacant positions within the National Parliament Secretariat.
Barrister Md. Golam Sarwar Bhuiyan, Secretary of the Parliament Secretariat, served as the secretary for the meeting. Senior officials from the Parliament Secretariat were also present.
