Kolkata: In a stern perform or perish message, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday stripped Partha Chatterjee of his Commerce and Industry portfolio in a Cabinet reshuffle, giving the key department to Finance Minister Amit Mitra to give a boost to industrialisation in the state.
Although Chatterjee was ostensibly removed from the post to “lessen his burden”, the shake-up involving 12 ministers came on the heels of a meeting chaired by Banerjee last week when she pulled up several ministers for non-performance and failure to utilise funds.
The removal of Chatterjee, TMC General Secretary and considered second in rank in the Cabinet, followed muted criticism of his failure to deliver.
“Partha Chatterjee was retaining many portfolios and he has also to look after the party as he is the general secretary. He was under tremendous pressure. So in order to lessen his burden it has been decided that Amit Mitra, who is also the Finance Minister, will look after the Industry and Commerce Department,” the Chief Minister said.
She said Chatterjee would retain IT, electronics and parliamentary affairs departments and will also assist the her in her departments.
Chatterjee, a trusted lieutenant of the Banerjee, has played an important role in shaping up TMC’s policies.
In a bid to speed up development work ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, Banerjee reallotted portfolios and inducted two new faces in the reshuffle of the 31-month-old ministry, which also saw a minister of state getting independent charge.
The new faces are Shashi Panja, daughter-in-law of former party leader and Union minister Ajit Panja, and Binay Burman.
Panja is MLA from Shyampukur in north Kolkata, while Burman represensts Mathabhanga Assembly seat in Cooch Behar district.
Burman replaced Hiten Burman as the Forest Minister, who had resigned citing health grounds.
Swapan Debnath, Minister of State for Micro and Small-scale Enterprises and Textiles, was given independent charge.
Debnath is the party legislator from Burdwan district.
With Thursday’s reshuffle, the strength of the ministers, including the Chief Minister, has gone up to 44.
Governor M K Narayanan administered the oath of office and secrecy to the two new ministers in Raj Bhavan in the presence of the Chief Minister and members of her Cabinet. (PTI)

Bimal Gurung takes oath as GTA chief

Kolkata: Setting aside separate statehood demand in Darjeeling, GJM supremo Bimal Gurung took oath as the new Chief Executive of the hill council in Darjeeling, from where he had resigned in July agitating for a separate state.
Gurung, in presence of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, took the oath to the office of Chief Executive of Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) on Thursday.
The oath-taking ceremony was presided over by West Bengal Governor M K Narayanan.
Gurung’s U-turn and return to GTA is seen as a political victory for Banerjee, whose tough stance on the issue of Gorkhaland forced the GJM strongman and his outfit to beat a retreat from their demand of separate state and return to the GTA.
Gurung had resigned from the post of GTA Chief Executive on July 30 after intensifying GJM agitation with the demand for Gorkhaland following the Centre’s decision to create Telangana. (PTI)