Akhilesh tries to strike a balance in allocating portfolios

LUCKNOW: Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav appears to have tried to strike a balance while distributing portfolios to his ministers by keeping the community and caste factors in mind.

For instance, senior minister Ahmad Hasan has been stripped of the important charge of the medical and health department. He has been given the basic education portfolio now. In an obvious balancing act, other ministers of the minority community apparently got a better deal.

Ministers from the minority community given importance include Kamal Akhtar, who got food and civil supplies department. Senior minister Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya has been holding the charge of this department up to now. Iqbal Mehmood gets charge of the much in focus food and drug administration department while Mehboob Ali, despite all the controversies in the secondary education department, has been given the textiles and sericulture departments. Minister of state Riyaz Ahmad got the fisheries and public sector enterprise departments while Farid Mafooz Kidwai has been given technical education department. Syeda Shadab Fatima has been appointed minister for women welfare while minister of state Wasim Ahmad gets charge of child development and nutrition.

Another minister given an insignificant department is Raghuran Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiyya. The important agriculture portfolio has been given to Vinod Kumar Singh alias Pandit Singh. To keep his focus on medical, health and the energy sectors, the CM has kept these key departments with him now.