Eight new faces inducted in Bengal ministry, 4 dropped
Kolkata: In a major reshuffle in the state Cabinet, eight new faces were inducted into the ministry while four were dropped. The new ministers were sworn in by Governor La Ganesan on Wednesday afternoon in presence of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and other ministers.
The new ministers who took the oath and got ministerial berths include Babul Supriyo, Snehasis Chakraborty, Partha Bhowmik, Udayan Guha, Pradip Majumder, Biplab Roy Chowdhury, Tajmul Hossain and Satyajit Barman.
The four ministers who were dropped include Saumen Mahapatra (Irrigation & Waterways), Humayun Kabir (Technical Education, Training and Skill Development), Ratna De Nag (Environment and Science, Technology and Bio-Technology) and Paresh Adhikary (MOS Education). They will be utilised in the party's organisational work.
Babul Supriyo was given the charge of Information Technology & Electronics (IT&E) as well as Tourism. After taking the oath of office, Supriyo said: "Life has come full circle. It was last year in August when I left (BJP), and today I am sworn in as a minister of the West Bengal government. I will work hard for the development of the people of West Bengal."
Shashi Panja has been given the additional charge of the Industry and Commerce department apart from Women and Child Development & Social Welfare.
Partha Chatterjee who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with teachers' recruitment scam was holding the charge of IT&E as well as the Industries and Commerce department.
Snehasis Chakraborty was given the responsibility of the Transport department while Partha Bhowmik was awarded the charge of Irrigation and Waterways. Pradeep Majumdar was given the responsibility of the Panchayats and Rural Development (P&RD) department while Udayan Guha was given the charge of the North Bengal Development department. The P&RD department was held by Pulak Roy since November last year after the death of incumbent Subrata Mukherjee. Apart from Public Health and Engineering, Roy has been given the additional charge of the Public Works Department (PWD).
Biplab Roy Chowdhury was given the independent charge of the Fisheries department while Tajmul Hossain and Satyajit Barman were reinstated as Minister of State of MSME and School Education department respectively.
Birbaha Hansda, who also took oath on Wednesday was given independent charge of the Self-Help Group and Self Employment department apart from holding her portfolio as Minister of state, Forest department.
Aroop Biswas has been given the additional charge of the Housing department besides continuing to hold the charge of the Power and Sports & Youth Affairs department.
Firhad Hakim has been relieved of the charge of the Housing and Transport department and will continue to be the minister of Urban Development and Municipal Affairs apart from being the Mayor of Kolkata.
Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay, who is the state Agriculture minister, has been given the additional charge of the Parliamentary Affairs department which was held by Partha Chatterjee.
Indranil Sen was awarded the independent charge of Technical Education, Training and Skill Development, apart from his charge as MoS of the Information and Cultural Affairs department. Sen, however, was relieved of his charge of the Tourism department.
Manas Bhunia was given the additional charge of the Environment department but was relieved of the responsibility of the Consumer Affairs department that he was holding since November last year. Bhunia will, however, continue to be in charge of the Water Resources Investigation & Development department.
Biplab Mitra's ministerial berth was reshuffled with the reassigning of charge of the Consumer Affairs department. Becharam Manna was given the responsibility of Agricultural Marketing that was being held by Mitra till date.
Manna's Labour department, however, went to Moloy Ghatak with the latter's PWD going into the hands of Pulak Roy. Ghatak will, however, continue to be the minister-in-charge of the Law department.
The Correctional Administration department which was in the hands of Ujjal Biswas went to Akhil Giri with the former getting the charge of the Science, Technology and Bio-Technology department.
Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee congratulated the newly appointed ministers and the entire Cabinet. "Heartiest congratulations to all newly appointed Ministers and the entire Cabinet of Ministers, GoWB. We must always prioritize people and their well-being, as we take on new challenges. Together, let's take Bengal to even greater heights! Joy Bangla!" Abhishek tweeted.
