BHUBANESWAR: In a historic development, Governor Ganeshi Lal will administer the oath of office to new ministers at a ceremony on May 22 at the Lok Seva Bhavan, welcoming them into Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's Cabinet of Odisha. An official document states that prominent legislators will be inducted to the state Cabinet at the event.
The MLA from Bhanjanagar, Bikram Keshari Arukha, who just resigned from his position as assembly speaker, got a call from Chief Minister Patnaik requesting him to take the oath as a minister. Both Sudam Marandi and Sarada Prasad Nayak, MLAs from Rourkela and Bangiriposi, who have also received similar calls from the chief minister, would be joining him.
The governor rushed back to Bhubaneswar to preside over the ceremony after paying a personal visit to his home state of Haryana. He arrived a day earlier than expected.
According to the formal invitation sent to the press by the Chief Secretary's Office, the oath-taking ceremony is scheduled to start at 9:50 am at the convention hall of the Lok Seva Bhawan in Bhubaneswar.
There are now openings in the council of ministers as a result of the recent resignations of Labour Minister Srikant Sahu and School and Mass Education Minister Samir Ranjan Dash. In addition, since the terrible murder of Health Minister Naba Kishore Das in January, the Health Ministry has been vacant.
The Odisha Cabinet can have up to 22 ministers, including the chief minister, although there are currently just 19. Pramila Mallick, minister of revenue, has been given temporary charge of the additional duties of the Labour and Departments of Mass and School Education. Niranjan Pujari, the finance minister, has also been given additional responsibility for the Department of Health and Welfare for Families.
In order to offset the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) growing influence in tribal-dominated districts like Mayurbhanj and Sundargarh, the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) inducted these well-known parliamentarians from various parts of Odisha.
The BJD wants to increase its presence in the districts of Ganjam and Mayurbhanj, where the BJP made significant gains in the most recent elections, by bringing back seasoned stalwarts like Bikram Keshari Arukha and Sudam Marandi.
Similarly, Sarada Prasad Nayak's inclusion from Sundargarh is meant to offset the BJP's growth in the area and honour Nayak for his contributions in helping the ruling party win the most recent Jharsuguda by-election.
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