Answer: 

Rajya Sabha (or Council of States) is the second chamber of the Indian Parliament (Article 79), originating in the Government of India Act of 1919. The deliberative and reflective function of Rajya Sabha is most valuable, as it meticulously analyses merits and demerits of a Bill. It also empowers its members to voice resistance, dissent, or disagreement.

 Role of Rajya Sabha in effective functioning of Indian Parliament: 

• Check and balance on the Lok Sabha: This ensures that laws are in the best interest of the country, and prevents Lok Sabha from becoming too dominant in the legislative process. 
• For example, passing of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, which was referred the Bill to a Select Committee for further review and deliberation, which ultimately led to several key changes being made to the bill before it was passed into law.
• Deliberation of important national issues: This allows for a more comprehensive and nuanced examination of these issues, 
• For example, after several rounds of discussion and debate, the National Food Security Act, 2013 was passed by the Rajya Sabha and then by the Lok Sabha.
• Scrutiny of the executive: The Rajya Sabha can ensure transparency and accountability of the government thorough provisions like Question hour, resolution of censure against the council of ministers, etc. 
• Representation of experts: Under Article 80 of the Constitution, experts in fields like science, literature, art, and social service are appointed that bring their special knowledge and perspectives to the discussions and decision making. 
• Continuity and stability: Rajya Sabha is a permanent body that ensures continuity and stability in the legislative process and helps to prevent sudden shifts in policy due to changes in the composition of the parliament.
• Special powers: In Rajya Sabha, seats are allotted to the states and Union Territories of India based on their population. This allows for a more diverse representation of regional interests in the upper house of parliament. Also, it has following special powers:
• it exercises the ability to create new All-India Services under Article 312 by passing a resolution subject to support and voting by two-thirds of members.
• the Rajya Sabha exercises power to make laws on any subject included in the State List toward “national importance” under Article 249. 
• it can approve proclamations under Article 352 or 356 or 360 if the Lok Sabha stands dissolved.

The need for a careful appraisal of these roles of the Rajya Sabha:

• Asymmetric Representation of states: States with a larger population will have more number of seats in the Rajya Sabha than those with a smaller population. 
• For example, the state of Uttar Pradesh, which has the largest population among Indian states, is allocated 31 seats in the Rajya Sabha, while Goa which has a much smaller population, is allocated only 1 seat in the Rajya Sabha.
• Deliberation of important national issues: Rajya Sabha has been criticized for not being able to deliberate and pass important bills effectively. 
• For example, The Insurance Amendment Bill, 2008 and the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill, 2013 took over a decade and three years respectively, to pass in the Rajya Sabha.
• Representation of experts: The Rajya Sabha has not been able to utilize the expertise of its nominated members effectively
• According to a study by PRS Legislative Research, nominated members accounted for only 2% of the total participation in the Rajya Sabha during the 16th Lok Sabha.
• Limited role in the budget process and Money Bills: The Rajya Sabha can only make recommendations on the budget, but it cannot make any changes to it.
• The Rajya Sabha must not be used by political parties to accommodate candidates who fail to win mass elections. 
• As a permanent body, Rajya Sabha can be given more responsibility alongside the permanent executive, owing to its representative nature.

It is crucial to undertake an in-depth assessment of these issues and to implement necessary reforms and improvements like review of the allocation of seats in the Rajya Sabha, improving the scrutiny and oversight of the executive and encourage more participation from women and other under-represented groups. This shall ensure that the Rajya Sabha can continue to effectively represent and serve the needs of all citizens in the future.