New Delhi, June 14
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal will hold additional charge of the Water Resources Ministry, earlier given to Meira Kumar who has subsequently been elected Speaker of the Lok Sabha.
Bansal has been given the additional responsibility by President Pratibha Patil in consultation with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, a Rashtrapati Bhavan communique said today.
The government has also effected another change in the Ministry by swapping the portfolios of Pratik Prakashbapu Patil, who was Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, and Arun Yadav, who was MoS for Youth Affairs and Sports.
Meira Kumar quit the Cabinet before contesting the election to the office of the Speaker.
Bansal is the Congress
MP from Chandigarh, the Union Territory that doubles up as the capital for both Punjab and Haryana, the states that are at loggerheads over sharing of
river waters.
