After a prolonged wait, the allocation of departments to ministers in Rajasthan has been finalised. On Friday, Governor Kalraj Mishra approved Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma’s proposal for the division of departments in the Cabinet, marking a significant step forward for the state.
The Cabinet Secretariat has outlined the key departmental assignments, with Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma overseeing crucial portfolios such as Home and Personnel, along with eight other departments. Deputy CM Diya Kumari will be responsible for six departments, including Finance and Tourism. The second Deputy CM, Dr Premchand Bairwa, will handle four departments, including Transport and Road Safety.
Among other ministers, Kirodi Lal has been entrusted with major departments like Rural Development, Agriculture, and Horticulture. Meanwhile, Gajendra Singh Khinvasar will spearhead the Medical Court. This allocation is expected to expedite the functioning of the government and boost administrative efficiency in Rajasthan.
UDH not included in the Cabinet
The Urban Development Department and the Department of Local Self-Government have not been assigned to a Cabinet minister this time. Whereas UDH and DLB are crucial departments in the state. In the previous three terms of the Congress government, this department was with Shanti Dhariwal. The BJP government has now assigned it to Cabinet Minister (Independent Charge) Jhabar Singh Khara.
It is noteworthy that the Bharatiya Janata Party received a majority in Rajasthan on December 3. Twelve days later, Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma and Deputy CMs Diya Kumari and Premchand Bairwa took the oath. After waiting for about 18 days, the expansion of the Cabinet took place, and on Friday, the distribution of departments was done.
Chief Minister and the departments:
Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma- Personnel Department, Excise Department, Home Department, Planning Department, General Administration Department, Policy Formulation Cell – Chief Minister’s Secretariat, Information and Public Relations Department, and Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB).
Deputy Chief Ministers and the Departments:
Deputy Chief Minister Diya Kumari- Finance Department, Tourism Department, Art, Literature, Culture, and Archaeology Department, Public Works Department, Women and Child Development Department.
Deputy Chief Minister Premchand Bairwa- Technical Education Department, Higher Education Department, Ayurveda, Yoga, and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy (AYUSH) Department, Transport and Road Safety Department.
Cabinet Ministers and the Departments:
Kirodi Lal Meena- Agriculture and Horticulture Department, Rural Development Department, Disaster Management, Relief, Civil Security Department, and Public Grievances Redressal Department.
Gajendra Singh Khinvasar- Medical and Health Department, and Medical and Health Services.
Colonel Rajyavardhan Rathore- Industries and Commerce Department, Information Technology and Communication Department, Youth Affairs and Sports Department, Skill, Employment, and Entrepreneurship Department, and Soldier Welfare Department.
Madan Dilawar- School Education Department, Panchayati Raj Department, and Sanskrit Education Department.
Kanhaiyalal- Public Health Engineering Department, and Land Resources Department.
Jogaram Patel- Parliamentary Affairs Department, Law and Legal Affairs Department Legal Advisory Office, and Justice Department.
Suresh Singh Rawat- Water Resources Department, and Water Resources (Planning) Department.
Avinash Gehlot- Social Justice and Empowerment Department
Sumit Godara- Food and Civil Supplies Department, and Consumer Affairs Department.
Joraram Kumawat- Animal Husbandry and Dairy Department, Gopalan Department, and Devasthan Department.
Babulal Kharadi- Tribal Area Development Department, and Home Defense Department.
Hemant Meena- Revenue Department, and Sub-division Department.
State Ministers (Independent Charge):
Surendrapal Singh Titi- Agriculture Marketing Department, Agriculture Irrigation Development and Water Use Department, Indira Gandhi Canal Department, and Minority Affairs and Waqf Department.
Sanjay Sharma- Forest Department, Environment and Climate Change Department, Science and Technology Department.
Gautam Kumar- Cooperation Department, and Urban Development Department.
Jhabar Singh Khara- Urban Development Department, and Local Self-Government Department.
Hiralal Nagar- Energy Department
State Ministers and Departments:
Ota Ram Devasi- Panchayati Raj Department, Rural Development Department, Disaster Management Assistance and Civil Security Department.
Dr Manju Baghmar- Public Works Department, Women and Child Development Department, and Child Rights Department.
Vijay Singh- Revenue Department, Sub-division Department, and Soldier Welfare Department.
K.K. Vishnoi- Industries and Commerce Department, Youth Affairs and Sports Department, Skill, Employment, and Entrepreneurship Department, and Policy Formulation Department.
Jawahar Singh Bedam- Home Department, Gopalan Department, Animal Husbandry and Dairy Department, and Fisheries Department.
Bhajan Lal strikes a balance
Before Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Jaipur, Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma already allocated the departments to ministers on Friday. The party has shown more trust in new faces in the allocation of key departments as well. Although it took the Chief Minister a full 6 days for the division of departments, it is considered a good distribution.