Vijayawada: Like in his previous cabinet, Andhra Pradesh CM Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy announced five deputy CMs this time too. He retained both K Narayana Swamy and Amzad Basha as deputy chief ministers in the new cabinet. He also retained the portfolios of excise and minority welfare that the two were holding in the first cabinet.
The other three deputy CMs are Peedika Rajanna Dora with tribal welfare, Budi Muthyala Naidu with panchayat raj and rural development, and Kottu Sathyanarayana with endowments portfolios.
The new team took oath at Velagapudi secretariat on Monday.
Jagan took almost a week to compose his new cabinet, in which he retained 11 ministers from the outgoing cabinet, while going for 14 new faces. The cabinet is a clear composition of firebrand leaders on one side and softspoken ones on the other. He has accommodated more BC ministers, which is aimed at targeting the TDP’s vote bank. The composition of the cabinet with a clear tilt towards BCs is a clear move by Jagan to lure them away from TDP ahead of the general elections.
Women and child welfare minister in the previous cabinet, Taneti Vanitha, was given the home ministry. Senior minister Botsa Satyanarayana, who was holding the portfolio of municipal administration and urban development in the previous cabinet, was now given education, while the education minister in the previous cabinet Admulapu Suresh was now given the portfolio of municipal administration and urban development.
