Nitish Kumar distributes portfolios, retains home and general administration

Patna, Aug 16 (IANS) After the cabinet expansion, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has kept his previous portfolios including home ministry, general administration, cabinet secretariat, vigilance with himself.

He has given the health ministry to his deputy Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, along with road construction, urban development and housing and rural development.

The other ministers under the JD-U quota include Ashok Chaudhary with the building construction portfolio, Bijendra Prasad Yadav with the power, planning and development department, Vijay Kumar Chaudhary with finance, commerce and parliamentary affairs ministry, Sharawan Kumar, rural development, Lesi Singh, fertilizer and consumer affairs, Sanjay Jha, water resource development ministry, information and public relations, Sunil Kumar, liquor prohibition and excise department, Jayant Raj, minor water resource department, Shella Kumari has the transport department, Madan Sahani is the social welfare minister and Jama Khan has minority affairs.

The portfolios of ministers under the JD-U quota are almost the same as earlier except that Vijay Kumar Chaudhary gets the finance ministry, earlier held by Tar Kishore Prasad during the NDA government. Nitish Kumar did not give it to the RJD. The education ministry portfolio went to the RJD.

From the RJD, Alok Kumar Mehta is the new land record and revenue minister, Tej Pratap Yadav gets environment, forest and climate change, Surendra Prasad Yadav ministry of cooperatives, Dr Ramanand Yadav is the new mining and geology minister, Kumar Sarvajeet is the tourism minister, Lalit Kumar Yadav is the PHED minister, Samir Kumar Mahaseth replaces Shahnawaz Hussain as industry minister. Prof Chandrashekher Yadav is the new education minister. This post was earlier hold by JD-U leader Vijay Kumar Chaudhary. Anita Devi is the new EBC and OBC welfare minister, Jitendra Rai gets the art, culture and youth affairs ministry, Sudhakar Singh gets agriculture, Kartik Kumar becomes law minister. He is a MLC and very close to Bahubali leader Anant Singh.

Shamim Ahmed becomes sugarcane minister, Shahnawaz Alam has disaster management, Surendra Ram is the labour resource minister and Mohammad Israil Mansoori gets information technology.

From the Congress, Afaq Alam becomes animal husbandry and fisheries minister while Murari Prasad Gautam takes over as Panchayati Raj minister.

An Independent Sumit Kumar Singh gets the science and technology ministry.