Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Sunday allocated responsibilities to his Council of Ministers, three days after taking oath, retaining key departments including Home and Finance.
Saini will oversee a total of 12 departments, including planning, excise and taxation, urban planning, public relations, language and culture, criminal investigation, law and legislative affairs, and housing for all.
Anil Vij, who was holding the charge of the Home Department under former Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, has been given additional responsibility and will now hold the charge of Energy and Transport as well as Labor Department.
According to a government order issued late night, the health department, which was earlier held by Vij, has now been handed over to Aarti Singh Rao, who will also be responsible for the medical education, research and AYUSH departments.
Saini, 54, took oath as chief minister at a formal ceremony in Panchkula on Thursday, which was attended by key NDA leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a large number of people from across the state. Along with Saini, 13 MLAs including two women also took oath.
Other portfolios include Industries and Commerce, Environment and Wildlife, which have been allotted to Rao Narbir Singh. Mahipal Dhanda will manage the school education department, while Vipul Goyal has been entrusted with revenue, disaster management, urban local bodies and civil aviation.
Arvind Sharma will handle prisons and cooperatives, while Shyam Singh Rana will look after agriculture and farmer welfare. Ranbir Gangwa is responsible for public health engineering, and Krishna Kumar Bedi will manage social justice and empowerment, including welfare for Scheduled Castes and Backward Castes. Shruti Chaudhary will handle the work of women and child development.
Additional ministerial positions include Krishna Lal Panwar, who will oversee development, panchayats, mines and geology. Minister of State (Independent Charge) Rajesh Nagar has been allotted Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, while Minister of State Gaurav Gautam (Independent Charge) will manage Youth Empowerment, Entrepreneurship and Sports.
As per the government order, the Governor of Haryana has allocated these departments on the recommendation of the Chief Minister. In the Haryana Assembly elections held on October 5, BJP won 48 out of 90 seats, leading to the formation of the new government.