The Lok Sabha is like the “House of the People” in India’s big Parliament. It’s the lower part, while the Rajya Sabha is the upper part. People choose who gets to be in the Lok Sabha through voting. They represent different areas called constituencies. Once they’re chosen, they stay in their seats for five years, unless the President says otherwise based on what the ministers suggest.
The Lok Sabha meets in a special place called the Lok Sabha Chambers in New Delhi’s Parliament House. Back when it started in 1950, it could have up to 500 members. Now it can have as many as 552, but right now, it has 543 members. Before 2020, there were also two extra members from the Anglo-Indian community, but that changed. The new parliament can fit 888 people for the Lok Sabha.
Some seats in the Lok Sabha, about 131 of them, are kept aside for certain groups of people. These include Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. A small group of members must be present for any important decisions – at least 10% of the total.
The Lok Sabha works for five years after its first meeting, unless something urgent happens. If there’s an emergency, they can keep working longer, but Parliament has to agree to it.
Every ten years, the government looks at the map and decides if the areas where Lok Sabha members work need to change. They do this based on how many people live in each place, using information from the Indian census. The Lok Sabha meetings are shown on TV through Sansad TV, which is right there in Parliament.
History
Before India was independent, it was under British rule for a long time. During that time, the British government had a lot of control. But things started changing. New laws were made to give Indians more say in how things were run. The Government of India Act in 1919 was one big step. Then in 1947, India became its own country with its own laws.
The Constitution of India, the country’s main set of rules, was made in 1949. It said that India was a free and fair place for everyone. That’s when the Lok Sabha officially started. The first members were chosen in 1952 after elections.
So, the Lok Sabha is like a big voice for the people of India in making important decisions.
