ON May 23, Naresh Jamatia took oath of office and secrecy as a new member of the council of ministers in the Left Front government of Tripura. He was administered the oath by the governor Devanand Kanwar, in presence of the chief minister Manik Sarkar and other members of the cabinet at Agartala. Naresh Jamatia, a member of the CPI(M)’s Tripura state committee, was first elected to the state assembly in 2008. His induction in the cabinet was necessitated as Jitendra Choudhury, a member of the cabinet since 1993, had had to resign after being elected to the 16th Lok Sabha. After the oath taking ceremony, chief minister Manik Sarkar informed the press about a reshuffle in the portfolios of the ministers. Naresh Jamatia has been assigned the forest, rural development and election departments. Badal Choudhury has been relieved from the charge of the finance ministry. He will now look after revenue, PWD (excluding drinking water and sanitation), and health and family welfare. Tapan Chakraborty has been relieved from the ministry of health and family welfare. He will now be the minister for higher and school education, industries and commerce (including IT) and law. Bhanulal Saha will be the new finance minister. He will also look after the departments of ICA and like food, civil supplies and consumer affairs.