The government cleared a total of 22 bills in the just concluded Budget Session of Parliament.

Though the number is less than the record 28 bills cleared in last year's Budget Session, some crucial legislation has been passed this year.

Among them, are the Electricity Bill that seeks to liberalise the power sector, the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Bill that aims to put curbs on government spending, the Companies (Amendment) Bill that seeks tighter regulations on the distribution of dividend by companies, and the Airports Authority of India (Amendment) Bill that will allow private sector participation for the upgradation of airports.

The Centre also got Parliament's approval for a constitutional amendment to incorporate tax on services as an entry in the Union List. The Banking Service Commission (Repeal) Bill has also been passed.

In fact, by the end of the session, the Centre has managed to get all the major economic bills passed. Those still pending include the IDBI (Repeal) Bill to convert the financial institution into a bank, the Banking Companies Bill, the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Repeal Bill, and the Government Securities bill to allow retail investors in debt securities to transfer or mortgage them.

The government also introduced the bills to grant dual citizenship to persons of Indian origin and a Bill to restrict the number of ministers in a legislature to 10 per cent of the strength of the House.

This is quite a feat for the National Democratic Alliance government, which has over the past few years been accused by Corporate India of delaying the passage of critical legislation relating to economic reforms.

In fact, the repeated stalling of parliamentary proceedings by the Opposition over the last couple of years had meant very little business was transacted in either of the Houses.

The Centre has, in the span of slightly over a year, cleared at least 65 bills.

The bills include the 13 economic bills passed in the Winter Session of 2002, the Money Laundering Bill, the Companies (Amendment) Bill to disband the Bank of Industrial and Financial Reconstruction, the UTI Repeal Bill and the Competition Bill to set up the Competition Commission of India. Finance Minister Jaswant Singh had described these bills as "the building blocks for the future".

At the end of the last Budget Session, several critical bills, including the Convergence Bill and the Electricity Bill, were pending with Parliament. However, the government managed to clear the backlog in the subsequent Monsoon and Winter sessions.

Report card

• The Electricity Bill
• The Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Bill
• The Companies (Amendment) Bill
• The Airports Authority of India (Amendment) Bill
• The Banking Service Commission (Repeal) Bill
• The Centre also got Parliament's nod for a constitutional amendment to incorporate tax on services as an entry in the Union List.