Babul Supriyo Gets New Ministry As Mamata Banerjee's Bengal Reshuffle

A day before leaving for a tour of Spain and Dubai, Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee effected a ministerial reshuffle, relieving minister Babul Supriyo of his responsibilities of the tourism department and handing him the charge of renewable energy, a senior official said.

Mr Supriyo will continue to hold the Information Technology portfolio besides his new responsibility.

Another singer-politician Indranil Sen, who was the minister of state for the technical education, training, and skill development department, was given the independent charge of the tourism department, he said.

Incidentally, Mr Sen was earlier the minister of state (independent charge) of the tourism department before Babul Supriyo was made the minister-in-charge of the department.

Indranil Sen will also continue looking after the Information and Cultural Affairs Department.

Forest Minister Jyoti Priya Mallick was given additional charge of the Department of Public Enterprises and Industrial Reconstruction, the bureaucrat said.

Arup Roy will be looking after the Department of Food Processing Industries and Horticulture after Banerjee took away the cooperation department from him and entrusted it with Pradip Mazumdar, who will continue to be the minister-in-charge of the panchayat department.

Mohammed Ghulam Rabbani, who was removed as the minister of the food processing department, will be looking after the environment department.

"I have held meetings with administrative officials to ensure that things go smoothly in my absence. The cabinet reshuffle was approved by the governor last night and we released it today," she told reporters at the state secretariat.

The Chief Minister said that as promised by Trinamool Congress' national secretary Abhishek Banerjee during a campaign before the recently-held bypoll in Dhupguri to make it a sub-division, the government has started the process.

"Dhupguri sub-division will be created along with a few anchals (areas) of Banarhat. The decision was taken today and I will ensure its implementation," she said.

Abhishek Banerjee, while campaigning at Dhupguri in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district, had on September 2 promised voters to make Dhupguri a sub-division within three months.

A sub-division is an administrative unit below the district level and above the block level and is administered by a sub-divisional officer (SDO). West Bengal has 69 sub-divisions.