Amarawati: Nine days after taking over as Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Saturday constituted his cabinet with 25 ministers being sworn-in here. However, there was no word on the name of five deputy CMs.
Governor ESL Narasimhan administered the oath of office and secrecy to the new ministers, including three women, at a ceremony held near State Secretariat at Velagapudi.
Jagan Reddy, who alone took oath on May 30, constituted his cabinet at one go. The council of ministers comprises Dharmana Krishna Das (Srikakulam), Botcha Satyanarayana (Vizianagaram), P Pushpa Srivani (Vizianagaram), Avanthi Srinivas (Vishakha), K Kanna Babu (EG), P Vishwarup (EG), Pilli Subhash Chandra Bose (EG), Kodali Nani (Krishna), V Srinivas (Krishna), Perni Nani (Krishna), B Srinivas Reddy Prakasham), M Goutham Reddy (Nellore), B Rajendranath Reddy (Kurnool), Alla Nani (WG), Ch Sriranganatha Raju (WG), T Vanitha, (WG) and M Sucharitha (Guntur).
While six ministers had served in the cabinet of Jagan Reddy's late father YS Rajasekhara Reddy in undivided Andhra Pradesh, all others are first-time ministers. The swearing in ceremony began at 11.49 am, the auspicious time set by Jagan Reddy's advisors.
Dharmana Prasada Rao was the first to be sworn-in. Adimulapu Suresh and M Goutham Reddy took oath in English, while the remaining ministers took oath in Telugu. Amjad Basha was the lone Muslim minister to take oath.
The names of deputy chief ministers are expected to be announced later in the day. According to sources, the posts may be allotted to Rajanna Dora (ST Salur), Alla Nani (Eluru WG Kapu), Partha Sarathi (Yadav Penamaluru Vijayawada), M Sucharitha (SC Guntur) and Amjad Basha (Minority Kadapa).
The chief minister has tried to maintain a balance of weaker sections in the cabinet with seven members from backward class, five from Scheduled Caste (2 Madiga, 3 Mala), four members each from Kapu and Reddy, one each from Kamma, ST, Kshatriya, Vyashya communities.
Reddy held a meeting of the YSR Congress Legislature Party on Friday where he announced the decision to appoint five deputies.
Accordingly, one each from Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, backward, minority and Kapu communities would be made a deputy chief minister. He also told his legislators that the Cabinet would predominantly comprise members from the weaker sections, contrary to expectations that the Reddy community would get a lion's share.
The swearing-in of five deputies is said to be accordance with YSR Congress's election manifesto which made various promises for the welfare and development of the five communities which constitute about 70% of the state’s population and are believed to have overwhelmingly supported the party.
Soon after formally assuming charge of his office at the state secretariat here, Jagan signed a file enhancing the monthly salary of ASHA (social health activists) workers from Rs 3,000 to Rs 10,000.
He also promised the government employees that his Cabinet, in its first meeting on June 10, would take decisions on granting interim relief and on scrapping Contributory Pension Scheme.
State Chief Secretary LV Subrahmanyam, Principal Advisor to Chief Minister Ajeya Kallam, Director General of Police (in-charge) Gautam Sawang and a host of YSR Congress leaders and secretariat employees greeted the chief minister on the occasion.
YSR Congress Party stormed to power last month with a landslide majority, winning 151 seats in 175-member Assembly.
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