Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Trivendra Singh Rawat took oath as the chief minister of Uttarakhand on Saturday, putting to rest all speculations surrounding the saffron party's choice for the post following a landslide win in the Assembly elections. BJP won 57 seats in the 70-seat Assembly.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP President Amit Shah, Health Minister JP Nadda, Minister of Water Resources Uma Bharti and former CM Harish Rawat were also present at the oath-taking ceremony which was held at the Parade Grounds in Dehradun.
Other MLAs who were sworn-in as cabinet ministers in the Uttarakhand government include Prakash Pant, Harak Singh Rawat, Madan Kaushik and Satpal Maharaj. Trivendra will hold his first Cabinet meeting at 4:30 pm on Saturday.
Trivendra also paid tribute at Shaheed Smarak in the state capital ahead of the swearing-in ceremony. He was elected leader of the BJP legislative party on Friday, thus clearing the way for him to become the ninth chief minister of Uttarakhand.
Uttarakhand: Ahead of his swearing-in, CM Designate Trivendra Singh Rawat pays tributes at Shaheed Smarak in Dehradun pic.twitter.com/ltx0UuzF0L
— ANI (@ANI_news) March 18, 2017
"I have a single point agenda, which is development. I will ensure 100 percent to offer better services to the people. People are struggling for basic amenities even 16 years after Uttarakhand was formed. The condition of schools, public healthcare and roads is pathetic. Besides, there is no employment opportunity," the 56-year-old Trivendra told the Hindustan Times.
Trivendra, who did his post-graduation in journalism, was a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh from 1979 to 2002 and held the post of organising secretary of the Uttarakhand region, and later the state, after its formation in 2000.
Trivendra also served as state cabinet minister under the BC Khanduri government in 2007.
