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A total of 35 BJP MLAs were sworn in as ministers on Monday as the cabinet of the chief minister Suvendu Adhikari-led government in West Bengal was expanded. Governor RN Ravi administered the oath of office, taking the strength of the council of ministers to 41 in the government led by Adhikari.
Among those sworn in as ministers were Dipak Barman, Arjun Singh, Shankar Ghosh, Gauri Shankar Ghosh, former TMC minister Tapas Roy, Manoj Kumar Oraon, Jagannath Chattopadhyay, Ajoy Poddar, Swapan Dasgupta, Dr Sharadwat Mukherjee and Kalyan Chakraborti.
BJP MLAs Rajesh Mahata, Indranil Khan and Malati Rava Roy were sworn in as ministers of state with independent charge in the Adhikari government, news agency PTI reported.
Adhikari and five ministers were sworn in at Kolkata’s Brigade Parade Ground on May 9 in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and the chief ministers of all BJP-ruled states.
Adhikari took charge of the home and hill affairs department, portfolios that were previously held by former chief minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee.
Agnimitra Paul, the first woman to be inducted into the cabinet, was given charge of the municipal affairs and urban development department, which was earlier overseen by Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim. She also heads the women and child development and social welfare department.
Former West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh is in charge of the panchayat and rural development department along with the animal husbandry department.
Nisith Pramanik, a former Union minister of state for home affairs, was given the north Bengal development department as well as the sports and youth affairs department.
Ashok Kirtania, a leader from the Dalit Matua community, was appointed minister for the food department.
Tribal leader Kshudiram Tudu was given charge of the backward classes welfare department and the minority affairs and Madrasah education department, which was previously under Mamata Banerjee.
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