Duty is to match up to PM Modi's expectations: Newly sworn-in Cabinet minister Naqvi

Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, who has been promoted to the Cabinet rank in the mega reshuffle, on Sunday said that the duty is to match up to expectations of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and to fulfill the vision of 'New India'.

"Our duty is to match up to the expectations of Prime Minister Modi. We pledge to carry our duties honestly. The aim is empowerment and development of poor, farmers, and the youth. The mission is to fulfill the vision of 'New India'," Naqvi told the media.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet rejig saw the promotion of as many as four Ministers of State to the rank of Cabinet ministers.

Dharmendra Pradhan, the Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, the Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, took the oath as the Cabinet ministers at the ceremony held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Pradhan is known to have spearheaded one of Prime Minister Modi's main schemes - the "Give it Up" plan for people to forego subsidised cooking gas or LPG voluntarily.

Beside managing to maintain ties with the Opposition parties, Naqvi has done wonders for the Union Government as the spokesperson in the Parliament and outside.

Nirmala Sitharaman, serving as the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for the Ministry of Commerce and Industry as well as a Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs under the Ministry of Finance headed by Arun Jaitley, also took the oath.

Piyush Goyal, the Minister of State with Independent Charge for Power, Coal, New and Renewable Energy and Mines, was also sworn-in as the Cabinet minister.

Other ministers who were handed over bigger responsibilities are:

-Shiv Pratap Shukla

-Ashwini Kumar Choubey, who is a Lok Sabha MP from Buxar, Bihar

-Virendra Kumar, a Lok Sabha MP from Tikamgah, Madhya Pradesh

-Anant Kumar Hegde, a Lok Sabha MP from Uttara Kannada, Karnataka

-Raj Kumar Singh

-Hardeep Puri

-Gajendra Singh Shekhawat

-Satya Pal Singh

-Alphons Kannanthanam, a distinguished former IAS officer of the 1979 batch, Kerala cadre.