Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the new Parliament building on Sunday. The ceremony started with a Havan which the Prime Minister attended alongside Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. During the Havan, the ‘Sengol’ was consecrated amid Vedic chanting by Adheenams before its installation.
Dressed in traditional attire, PM Modi walked into Parliament premises from its Gate No. 1 and was welcomed by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.
PM then carried the Sengol in a procession amid tunes of “nadaswaram” and chanting of Vedic mantras to the new Parliament building and installed it in a special enclosure on the right side of the Speaker’s chair in the Lok Sabha chamber.
The new Parliament building can comfortably seat 888 members in the Lok Sabha chamber and 300 in the Rajya Sabha chamber. In case of a joint sitting of both the Houses, a total of 1,280 members can be accommodated in the Lok Sabha chamber.
PM Modi had laid the foundation stone of the new Parliament building on December 10, 2020. The present Parliament building was completed in 1927, and is now 96 years old.