Tomar's main challenge is to keep momentum in delivery of welfare schemes

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to retain Narendra Singh Tomar as Rural Development Minister shows the PM's faith in his handling of key welfare schemes that helped the BJP make massive political gains in 2019 polls.

Under Tomar's leadership, allocation for rural employment scheme MGNREGA increased and reached Rs 60,000 crore in 2019-20.

About 1.5 crore pucca homes were built under the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana (rural) during his last tenure. Besides these two flagship schemes, a lot of development work was also carried under various other welfare schemes.

The challenge for Tomar in his second term will be to continue all these welfare schemes with the same momentum.

Many leaders in BJP and political observers are of the opinion that the delivery of these flagship schemes is one of the reasons for the party's massive victory in 2019 polls.

Tomar, a three-time MP who was made to the Union Cabinet for the second time, has also been given charge of the Agriculture Ministry.

It has been a long political journey for him who started as a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) youth wing leader in the early 80s.

Born on June 12, 1957 at Murar in Gwalior district, Narendra Singh Tomar was president of the Gwalior unit of the BJP youth wing from 1980-84.

Tomar was elected as a councillor in 1983, entered the Madhya Pradesh assembly in 1998 and served as a minister in the BJP government in the state from 2003-2007.

Under his leadership as BJP's Madhya Pradesh unit head, the party won two assembly elections in the state back-to-back.

In 2014, Tomar won the Lok Sabha election from Gwalior and was made a cabinet minister, heading several ministries including mines, steel, labour and employment and rural development and panchayati raj.

Tomar won from Morena in the 2019 election by a margin of over 1.13 lakh votes.