File Photo: Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar
The three newly-inducted ministers in Haryana got their portfolios after three days of wait today even as Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar also changed the departments of some other Ministers.
Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki on the advice of the Chief Minister allocated portfolios amongst the members of the Council of Ministers with immediate effect, an official spokesman said in Chandigarh.
In the exercise, senior most Minister in the Khattar Cabinet, Ram Bilas Sharma, was divested of the key portfolio of Transport Department, which will now be handled by the newly inducted Cabinet Minister Krishan Lal Panwar.
Besides, Transport, Mr Panwar has also been given Housing, which was earlier held by the Chief Minister, who also gave up couple of portfolios under him.
The other newly inducted Minister of State Ghanshyam Saraf has been given the Public Health Engineering (Independent Charge) and will also look after the Excise and Taxation (Attached with Finance Minister Capt Abhimanyu who also holds this portfolio).
The third newly inducted Minister Nayab Singh Saini, who holds the Minister of State rank, will handle Mines and Geology and Renewable Energy, both Departments attached with the Chief Minister.
Meanwhile, Health and Sports Minister Anil Vij has been given additional charge of Department of Archives.
Public Works (B&R) Minister Rao Narbir Singh has been given Forests and Industrial Training handled earlier by Capt Abhimanyu while Public Health Engineering under Narbir Singh earlier will now be handled by Ghanshyam Saraf.
Social Justice and Empowerment and Women and Child Development Minister Kavita Jain will now also handle the Urban Local Bodies handled earlier by Mr Khattar. However, Ms Kavita has been divested of Welfare of SCs and BCs Department which now goes to Minister of State Krishan Kumar.
Minister of State Bikram Singh Thekedar, who holds the charge of Cooperation and Printing and Stationery (Independent Charge) will now also look after Agriculture Department, attached with Agriculture Minister Om Prakash Dhankar.
Meanwhile, the three newly inducted ministers in the Manohar Lal Khattar government were alloted official rooms in the state secretariat building on Friday.
Krishan Lal Panwar (Cabinet rank), Ghanshyam Saraf (Minister of state with Independent charge) and Nayab Singh Saini (Minister of state) were inducted as ministers in the BJP government in the state on July 23.
Meanwhile today, the four Chief Parliamentary Secretaries - Shaym Singh Rana, BS Virk, Seema Trikha and Kamal Gupta - who had been administered oath by the Chief Minister on July 23 were also allocated different Departments in which they will assist the Chief Minister and other Ministers.