After inducting five new ministers in the first Cabinet expansion on Monday, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government on Tuesday allocated portfolios to the new ministers. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann tweeted about the portfolios allocated to the newly inducted ministers.
New inductee Aman Arora will handle Information and Public Relations, New and Renewable energy resources, Housing and Urban Development departments. Dr Inderbir Singh Nijjar has been given Local Government, Parliamentary Affairs, Conservation of Land and Water and Administrative Reforms departments.
— Bhagwant Mann (@BhagwantMann) July 5, 2022
On Monday, five AAP MLAs were inducted as ministers in the Punjab government as Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann expanded his cabinet. Notably, it was the first cabinet expansion of the AAP government that stormed to power in the state after the assembly polls held earlier this year.
PORTFOLIOS OF NEW PUNJAB MINITERS
Fauja Singh will be the Minister for Freedom Fighters, Defence Services Welfare, Food Processing and Horticulture. Harpal Singh Cheema has been allocated finance, planning, programme implementation and excise and taxation departments.
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Chetan Singh Jauramajra has been given Health and Family Welfare, Medical Education and Research departments. Anmol Gagan Mann will be the Minister for Tourism and Culture Affairs, Investment Promotion, Labour and Removal of Grievances. Gagan Mann is the second woman to be inducted as cabinet minister in the Mann-led government.
On the other hand, the education portfolio has been handed to Harjot Bains.
CABINET STRENGTH CLIMBS TO 15
The strength of the state cabinet has climbed to 15 after new ministers were inducted on Monday. After the AAP formed the government following its resounding victory in the assembly polls, 10 MLAs, including eight first-timers, were inducted as ministers in March.
However, in May, Health Minister Vijay Singla was sacked from the state cabinet over graft charges, taking the strength of ministers to nine in the cabinet. The Aam Aadmi Party had stormed to power in Punjab by bagging 92 seats out of a total of 117.