Chandigarh: In a further blow to Haryana Minister Anil Vij, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader lost two key state departments he had been in charge of in a reallocation announced Tuesday. Vij lost both the Technical Education and Science and Technology departments, as they were merged with the Higher Education department, a portfolio to be held by minister Mool Chand Sharma.
While Vij continues to hold Home, Health, Medical Education and Research and AYUSH departments, the loss of the Technical Education and Science and Technology departments is the second setback for the minister after losing control of CID in January 2020, when it was taken out of the purview of the Home department.
“The Governor of Haryana, on the advice of the chief minister, is pleased to make the following allocation/re-allocation of portfolios amongst the members of Council of Ministers with immediate effect,” read the government notification released Tuesday.
The reallocation left Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar in-charge of the maximum number of departments. Including the ones he already held, the CM will now head 14 departments in the Haryana government. These include Finance, Institutional Finance and Credit Control, Town, Country Planning and Urban Estates, Irrigation and Water Resources, Planning, Administration of Justice, Architecture, General Administration, Criminal Investigation, Personnel and Training, Raj Bhawan Affairs, Social Justice and Empowerment, Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes and Antyodaya (SEWA), Youth Empowerment and Entrepreneurship, Information, Public Relations, Languages and Culture and Sports departments and any other department not specifically allotted to any minister.
The Sports Department was earlier with Sandeep Singh, who has been booked by Chandigarh police for alleged sexual harassment. Singh gave up charge of the ministry after the registration of FIR against him.
Meanwhile, talking to ThePrint Wednesday, Vij said that the number of departments given to him didn’t matter to him. “I do my work with commitment and will continue to do,” he added.
As Minister for Science and Technology, Vij had been senior IAS officer Ashok Khemka’s boss. A day before Vij lost the two departments, Khemka too had been shifted to the relatively low-profile Archives Department.
Tuesday’s reallocation was expected, as the Haryana government on 1 January had issued a notification announcing its decision to merge departments of similar nature to bring synergy in their functioning and improve administrative efficiency.
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Who got what
The Haryana cabinet has 14 ministers at present, including CM Khattar.
Tuesday’s reallocation left Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala unaffected, as he remained in charge of the Revenue and Disaster Management, Excise and Taxation, Industries and Commerce, Public Works (B&R), Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, Civil Aviation and Rehabilitation departments, already held by him.
Education minister Kanwar Pal, who earlier held the portfolios of both School and Higher Education, will now head the School Education, Parliamentary Affairs, Hospitality, Environment, Forests and Wildlife, and Heritage and Tourism departments.
Minister Mool Chand Sharma shall now head Transport, Mines and Geology, Elections and Higher Education departments, while Ranjit Singh will continue to hold Energy and Jails departments.
Jai Prakash Dalal will head the Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Fisheries and Law and Justice, while Dr Banwari Lal will continue to head Co-operation and Public Health Engineering departments.
Dr. Kamal Gupta will also continue to head Urban Local Bodies and Housing For All, while Devender Singh Babli will now head Development and Panchayats.
Among Ministers of State, Om Prakash Yadav will head Sainik and Ardh Sainik Welfare (independent charge), Social Justice, Empowerment, Welfare of SCs and BCs and Antyodaya (SEWA) (attached with CM Khattar), Kamlesh Dhanda will head Women and Child Development (independent charge) and Archives (independent charge), while Anoop Dhanak will head Labour (independent charge), Revenue and Disaster Management (attached with the Deputy CM Chautala), Industries and Commerce (attached with the Deputy CM) and Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs (attached with the deputy CM).
(Edited by Poulomi Banerjee)
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