Context: Recently, the monsoon session of Parliament began after several months which was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, the government has suspended Question Hour for the session and has also curtailed the Zero Hour.
About Parliament session

• The President from time to time summons each House of Parliament to meet.
• The maximum gap between two sessions of Parliament cannot be more than six months.

There are usually three sessions in a year:

• Budget Session (February to May)
• Monsoon Session (July to September)
• Winter Session (November to December)

A session of Parliament is the period spanning between the first sitting of a House and its prorogation (or dissolution in the case of the Lok Sabha).
Termination of Parliament

• A session of Parliament consists of many meetings.
• Each meeting of a day consists of two sittings, i.e. a morning sitting from 11 am to 1 pm and post-lunch sitting from 2 pm to 6 pm.
• A sitting of Parliament can be terminated by adjournment or adjournment sine die or prorogation or dissolution (in the case of the Lok Sabha).

Adjournment

• An adjournment suspends the work in a sitting for a specified time, which may be hours, days or weeks.

Adjournment Sine Die

• Adjournment sine die means terminating a sitting of Parliament for an indefinite period.
• The House is adjourned without naming a day for reassembly, it is called adjournment sine die.
• The power of adjournment as well as adjournment sine die lies with the presiding officer of the House.
• He can also call a sitting of the House before the date or time to which it has been adjourned or at any time after the House has been adjourned sine die.

Prorogation

• The presiding officer (Speaker or Chairman) declares the House adjourned sine die, when the business of a session is completed.
• Within the next few days, the President issues a notification for prorogation of the session.
• However, the President can also prorogue the House while in session.

Dissolution

• Rajya Sabha is a permanent House, so it is not subject to dissolution and only the Lok Sabha is subject to dissolution.
• Unlike a prorogation, a dissolution ends the very life of the existing House, and a new House is constituted after general elections are held.

Types of Dissolutions
The dissolution of the Lok Sabha can take place in two ways:

• Automatic dissolution: On the expiry of its tenure of five years or the terms as extended during a national emergency.
• Whenever the President decides to dissolve the House, which he is authorized to do.