Ahmedabad: Hours after taking oath for a second straight term in office, Chief Minister of Gujarat Bhupendra Patel on Monday night allocated portfolios to the newly-inducted ministers, keeping home and revenue, among other key departments, with himself.
Cabinet minister Kanubhai Desai has been given finance, energy and petrochemicals departments, while the only woman Cabinet member — Bhanuben Babariya — has been allocated social justice and empowerment, women and child development portfolios.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Bhupendra Patel (60), along with a 16-member Council of Ministers, took oath in the afternoon and around 6.30 pm presided over the first meeting of the new Cabinet followed by allocation of portfolios to his team members.
The CM kept portfolios of home, general administration, revenue, disaster management, urban development and urban housing, pilgrimage development, panchayat, science and technology, roads and building, Narmada, ports and information and broadcasting with himself, according to an official release.
Another cabinet minister Rushikesh Patel has been given health, higher and technical education, law and parliamentary and legislative affairs portfolios, while Raghavji Patel will handle agriculture, fisheries, rural housing and rural development departments.
Balwantsinh Rajput has been allotted industries, labour and employment, MSME (Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises), cottage industry and civil aviation as a cabinet minister.
Cabinet member Kunvarji Bavaliya has been given water resources and water supply and food and civil supply departments.
While Mulubhai Bera has been given tourism, cultural activities, forest and environment departments as a Cabinet minister, his colleague Kuber Dindor will handle tribal development as well as primary and secondary education portfolios.
Harsh Sanghavi has been given portfolios of home, police housing, industry and cultural activities as a Minister of State (MoS). He will also handle sports and youth service, NRG (Non Resident Gujaratis) department, prisons, border security and transport portfolios as MoS with independent charge.
MoS Jagdish Vishwakarma has been given independent charge of cooperation, salt industry and protocol departments. He will also handle MSME, cottage industry, khadi and village industry and civil aviation in the capacity of a junior minister.
Parshottam Solanki has been given fisheries and animal husbandry as a Minister of State, while Bachubhai Khabad has been made MoS for panchayat and agriculture departments.
Mukesh Patel will handle forest and environment, climate change, water resources and water supply departments as a junior minister.
Praful Pansheriya has been given the charge of parliamentary and legislative affairs as well as education portfolio as a junior minister.
While Bhikhusinh Parmar has been made a junior minister for food and civil Supply as well as social justice and empowerment, his colleague Kunvarji Halpati will handle tribal development, labour and employment and rural development as an MoS.
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