Punjab: Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer loses 4 portfolios, Chetan Singh Jouramajra gets mines, water

Ruchika M Khanna

Chandigarh, November 21

In a major change in the Cabinet, Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer has been divested of most of his portfolios with his key departments going to Public Relations Minister Chetan Singh Jouramajra.

Two ministers snubbed by CM

At a meeting of the Punjab Council of Ministers on Monday, CM Mann had reportedly expressed displeasure at the working of three other ministers. While Mann had asked his colleagues to be “cautious”, he had snubbed two ministers during the meeting, while one other minister was summoned separately and asked to remain well informed about their departments.

Hayer now has charge of only Sports and Youth Welfare Department. His Departments of Mines and Geology, Conservation of Soil and Water, and Water Resources have been given to Jouramajra. The latter earlier held the portfolio of Health Department which was changed in January this year, when Dr Balbir Singh had replaced him.

His other portfolio, Department of Science and Technology, has been kept by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann himself. The Chief Minister now is the in charge of 11 departments.

This is the second time that Hayer’s portfolio has been changed. He was earlier holding the charge of Higher and School Education till January, when these departments were allocated to Minister Harjot Bains. Hayer got married earlier this month.

Sources in the Chief Minister’s Office deny that Hayer has been divested of charges in a move to cut him to size. “He has been doing exceptionally well as Sports and Youth Services Minister. It was his initiative to give Rs 8 lakh grant to each player for preparing to participate in international sports events. His policy of making sports grounds and installing other infrastructure in each village too has been much appreciated by the Chief Minister. It is to ensure that he keeps his focus on this very important department that the charges of other departments have been re-allocated to other minister. The reshuffle was effected after consulting him,” said a senior functionary in the Chief Minister’s Office.

Interestingly, Jouramajra becomes the fourth Water Resources Minister of Punjab during the 20 months of the Aam Aadmi Party’s rule in the state. Brahm Shankar Jimpa was the first person to get this department, followed by Harjot Bains and then Hayer.

The changes in the Cabinet portfolios were proposed by the Chief Minister earlier during the day and was approved by Governor Banwarilal Purohit.