Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar distributes portfolios to cabinet, retains home and vigilance

PATNA: Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday formed the cabinet of his new NDA-backed government and distributed portfolios among the ministers.

Kumar retained the key portfolios of home, general administration and vigilance while giving away the crucial finance and commercial taxes portfolio to his deputy, Sushil Kumar Modi, said a senior official of the state government, requesting anonymity.

The list has not yet been uploaded on the government website.

Modi will also hold additional portfolios of environment and forest and information technology, he said.

Prem Kumar, who was the leader of the BJP in the assembly during the erstwhile grand alliance government, was allocated agriculture while Nitishs trusted lieutenant Bijendra Prasad Yadav was given energy, prohibition and excise.

Another Nitish confidant Rajiv Ranjan Singh, alias Lalan Singh, got the water resources department, besides the additional portfolio of planning and development.

The portfolios for other ministers are as follows:

Nand Kishore Yadav road construction

Shrawan Kumar rural development and parliamentary affairs

Ram Narayan Mandal revenue and land reforms

Jai Kumar Singh industries, science and technology

Pramod Kumar tourism

Krishnandan Verma education

Maheshwar Hazari building construction

Vinod Narayan Jha PHED

Shailesh Kumar rural works

Suresh Kumar Sharma urban development and housing

Kumari Manju Verma social welfare

Vijay Kumar Sinha labour resources

Santosh Kumar Nirala transport

Rana Randhir Singh cooperative

Khurshid alias Feroz Ahmad minority welfare and sugarcane development

Vinod Kumar Singh mines and geology

Madan Sahni food and consumer protection

Krishna Kumar Rishi art and culture

Kapildeo Kamat panchayati raj

Dinesh Chandra Yadav minor irrigation and disaster management

Ramesh Rishideo SC, ST welfare

Brij Kishore Bind backward and EBC welfare

Pashupati Paras animal and fish resources.