Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel announced that a new Research Centre will start functioning from September 2 at the Delhi Assembly, to provide recommendations to the House as well as for the city government.

Rs 14 crore has been sanctioned by the Delhi government for the Research Centre, which will function from the Assembly building.

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Goel told IANS that the Centre was being set up to create a repository of valuable research and reference material for use of the lawmakers and other stakeholders.

According to him, “It will help the Assembly in providing quality research and reference material to the MLAs on their request.”

This Centre’s first batch will incorporate 50 Fellows Doctorate/PhD with one-year full-time experience or Post Graduate with minimum two years full-time work experience, and 90 Associate Fellows, Post Graduate or Graduate with a minimum one year of full-time work experience.

There will be one Fellow over two Assembly constituencies. With 70 constituencies in Delhi, there will be 35 Fellows in the field. Fifteen will sit in the Assembly building for different subjects or fields.

“The need for a Research Centre arises due to several reasons, including what the government should provide to its people and how can these facilities be improved,” Goel said.

The Centre will study best practices in various fields in other legislatures and governments within as well as outside the country.

“It will provide a comparative study of existing laws and policies in other states and countries. It will also publish reports and resource material for use of the MLAs, departments and other stakeholders.”

The 15 areas they will cover will be Art, Culture, Sports and Tourism, Education and Skill Development, Environment, Finance and Taxation, Health, Human Resources and Reforms in Government Departments, Information Technology, Law and Public Safety, Legislative Practices, Municipal functions and Local Bodies, Power and Water Sector reforms, Social Welfare measures and Women Empowerment; Trade, Commerce and Industries and Agriculture Reforms; Transport and Traffic management; and Urban Planning and Public works.

“There will be 70 Assistant Fellows, each under an MLA. The remaining will sit in the Assembly and will assist the Fellows.”

The selection of Fellows/Associate Fellows, he added, was almost finalized.

“Once into the system, the research Fellows will collect the data related to different fields assigned to them. They will study the details and give shape to the data and provide it to the Assembly. We will work on them and take them to the government.

Speaker said that the Fellows will work in close coordination with the MLAs and officers of the Assembly Secretariat as well as with various departments and organisations.

“There are a number of new MLAs every time. When AAP came to power, almost all the MLAs were new to politics and also in the Assembly. There will be some new MLAs in the coming elections as well. There will be a wing of the Research Centre that will help these MLAs with the rules and whatever information they want.”

The aim of the Centre is to “attract the best talent available to spearhead the multi-dimensional development of Delhi and India and to inject fresh thoughts, opinion, innovativeness, improvisation and precise solutions into the decision-making process and to evolve and groom future leaders as valuable assets to the society.”