Thursday, March 31 2005 10:00 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Ranchi: Jharkhand Chief Minister Arjun Munda last night (Mar 30, 3005) gave Cabinet status to all his Ministerial colleagues and allocated portfolios giving charge of Home Ministry to Independent MLA Sudesh Mahto and Finance to State Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Raghuvar Das besides rewarding five Independents with attractive Ministries.

Kamlesh Singh, whose absence from the Assembly helped Munda win vote of confidence on March 12 and later switched over to BJP from Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), got the charge of Water Resources and Food and Civil Supplies department.

Madhu Kora, another Independent, will look after Mines, Geology, Cooperative and Parliamentary Affairs while Enos Ekka has been given Rural Development and Transport.

Hari Narayan Rai, another Independent, got the departments of Forest and Environment.

Highly-placed sources said Mahto, who belongs to All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU) but contested Assembly poll as an Independent, has also been allotted PWD, Building Construction, Sports and Culture while his party colleague Chandra Prakash Choudhury is the Minister for Science and Technology, Land Reforms, Revenue and Registration.

Janata Dal United (JDU's) Radha Krishna Kishore has been given charge of Drinking Water and Sanitation while his party leader Ramesh Singh Munda made in charge of Welfare Department.

BJP's Pradeep Yadav has been allocated Human Resource Development and Raghuvar Das in charge of Sales Tax and Urban Development besides Finance.

The rest of the portfolios have been retained by Munda, the sources said adding a notification on this has been sent to the Governor for notification.