Two days after the Cabinet expansion exercise, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on May 29 allocated portfolios to all ministers and kept for himself important portfolios of Finance, Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms, Intelligence, IT/BT, Infrastructure Development and Information.
Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar has been assigned major portfolios of Major and Medium Irrigation and Bengaluru City Development, including Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), and other civic agencies in the Bengaluru City. Both portfolios would get a huge amount of allocation in the State budget.
Senior Minister G. Parameshwars has been allotted Home excluding Intelligence, while H.K. Patil received Law and Parliamentary Affairs, Legislation and Tourism.
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The senior Ministers have been allotted major portfolios which involve implementation of five ‘guarantees’ announced by the government.
The seven-time MP, and now Minister H.K. Muniyappa has been allotted Food and Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, which play a vital role in the free distribution of monthly 10kg of foodgrains to each member of the BPL family, which is one of the guarantees of the government.
Another senior Minister K.J. George has been assigned Energy. This portfolio too assumed significance as the government has promised to provide 200 units of free power to all households in Karnataka.
Eight-time MLA and Minister Ramalinga Reddy received Transport, which is again a major portfolio given the government’s promise to provide free bus travel for women across Karnataka. Mr Reddy is also given the Muzrai department.
The Large and Medium Industries portfolio was given to M.B. Patil while Satish Jarkiholi bagged Public Works, while N. Cheluvarayaswamy was given the Agriculture portfolio.
First-time Minister Madhu Bangarappa has been given primary and secondary education while M.C. Sudhakar has been allocated Higher Education.
On the expected lines, Laxmi Hebbalkar has been given Women and Child Development, Disabled and Senior Citizens Empowerment;
Senior Minister H.C. Mahadevappa has been given a major Social Welfare portfolio. The government allocates huge amounts of money to this department for welfare of the poor and SCs and STs.
Dinesh Gundu Rao has been given Health and Family Welfare, while Priyank Kharge has been assigned Rural Development and Panchayat Raj.
Krishna Byregowda has been allotted Revenue, while B.Z. Zameer Ahmed bagged Housing, Wakf and Minority welfare.
The portfolios of other Ministers are: K. Venkatesh – Animal Husbandry and Sericulture; Eshwar Khandre – Forest, Ecology and Environment; K.N. Rajanna – Cooperation, excluding Agriculture Marketing; Sharanappa Darshanapur – Small Scale Industries, Shivananda Patil – Textile, Sugarcane and Agriculture Marketing; R.B. Thimmapur – Excise; S.S. Mallikarjun – Mines, Geology and Horticulture; Shivaraj Tangadagi – Backward Classes, Kannada and Culture; Sharan Prakash Patil – Medical Education and Skill Development; Mankal Vaidya – Fisheries and Ports and Inland Transport; Rahim Khan – Municipal Administration and Haj; D. Sudhakar – Planning and Statistics; Santhosh Lad – Labour; N.S. Boseraju – Minor Irrigation and Science & Technology; Byrathi Suresh – Urban Development and Town Planning, including KUWSDB, KUIDFC, excluding BBMP, BDA, BWSSB, BMRDA, AND BMRCL; and B. Nagendra – Youth Services, Sports and ST Welfare.
(With inputs from PTI)
