The newly-appointed Cabinet Ministers — Dr Inderbir Singh Nijjar, Fauja Singh Sarari, Anmol Gagan Mann, and Chetan Singh Jauramajra — on Wednesday took the charge of their respective departments, couple of days after their induction in the Council of Ministers by the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.
Amritsar South MLA Dr Inderbir Singh Nijjar, taking reign of Local Government, Parliamentary Affairs, Conservation of Land and Water, and Administrative Reforms departments, assured that he would wholeheartedly fulfil the responsibility entrusted upon him.
Known for his professional commitment, Dr Nijjar took charge in the presence of the Cabinet Ministers Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, and Laljit Singh Bhullar at Punjab Civil Secretariat.
Extending words of thanks to the party and Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, Dr Nijjar said: “It was a matter of pride to have the opportunity to serve the people of the state and I assured the Punjabis to provide them with the ultra-modern civic amenities...We are common people, thus, know the difficulties of the common folk.”
Assuming the charge of office as the Minister of Freedom Fighter, Defense Services Welfare, Food Processing and Horticulture Departments in the presence of Cabinet Minister Dr Baljit Kaur and Harjot Singh Bains at Punjab Civil Secretariat, Cabinet Minister Fauja Singh Sarari said that he will leave no stone unturned to bring the departments, assigned to him, to new heights.
Bowing head before the Almighty for giving him opportunity to serve the people and expressing gratitude towards the Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann for reposing faith in him, Sarari said that the State Government is working tirelessly for every section of the society and committed for the welfare of the freedom fighters and ex-servicemen. “The State Government is working hard to further promote the food processing and horticulture sector in State,” he said.
Punjabi singer-turned-politician Anmol Gagan Mann also took the charge as Tourism and Cultural Affairs, Investment Promotion, Labour and Grievances Redressal Minister in presence of four Cabinet Ministers Harbhajan Singh ETO, Lal Chand Kataruchakk, Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal and Laljit Singh Bhullar.
Anmol Gagan, after assuming the charge, said that the Punjab Government has the firm resolution to fulfil all the promises made with the people of the state of Punjab.
Lashing out the previous government’s lackadaisical approach towards Punjabis, Anmol Gagan said that leaders of previous governments had not any pragmatic policy for these important departments. She apprised that the tourism sector has the great potential in Punjab and the State Government is paying special attention to this sector.
“I would ensure the welfare of labourers through the Labour Department and special emphasis be laid to bolster the investment in Punjab,” she added.
Chetan Singh Jauramajra, taking over the charge of crucial Health and Family Welfare, Medical Education and Research and Elections departments, affirmed that he would serve the people of the state and discharge all his responsibilities with full dedication and diligence.
Reiterating that the State Government would strive hard to bring state-of-the-art healthcare facilities to the doorsteps of the people, the Cabinet Minister categorically said: “Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann's government was committed to fulfilling every promise made to the people.”
JANJUA TAKES OVER AS PUNJAB’s 41ST CHIEF SECRETARY
A 1989-batch IAS officer Vijay Kumar Janjua on Wednesday joined as Punjab’s 41st Chief Secretary. He took the charge as the new state Chief Secretary replacing Anirudh Tewari, who has now been posted as Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration director general. As per the orders issued by the State Government, Janjua would also be the Principal Secretary Personnel and Vigilance in addition to his present assignment as Chief Secretary.
Janjua worked in various departments of Punjab including Rural Development, Industries, Labour, Animal Husbandry etc. He also served in the Government of India for three years as Director Industries in the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion. During tenure as Fatehgarh Sahib Deputy Commissioner, Janjua developed a PRISM software with the help of NIC and introduced computerised registration of properties for the first time in Punjab.
He assumed the charge of his office in the presence of outgoing Chief Secretary Anirudh Tewari. On the occasion Additional Chief Secretary to Chief Minister A Venu Prasad besides senior civil officers — Tejveer Singh, Hussan Lal, Ajoy Sharma, Rajat Agarwal, Abhinav Trikha, Sonali Giri, Sumeet Jarangal, Kumar Amit, Amrit Kaur Gill, Apneet Riyait, Girish Dayalan and Amit Talwar — were also present.