1/3 of Union Council of ministers are first-timers
New Delhi: One-third of the total ministers in the Modi's 2.0 Cabinet are the first-timers, which includes BJP president Amit Shah and former foreign secretary S Jaishankar.
Two former chief ministers -- Ramesh Pokhriyal (Uttarakhand) and Arjun Munda (Jharkhand) -- have taken oath as Union ministers for the first time.
This will be the first innings as Union ministers for six Cabinet ministers and 13 Ministers of State in the Modi government. Most prominent among them are Shah and Jaishankar, who are likely to get high profile ministries.
While Shah won Lok Sabha polls from Gandhinagar with a massive margin, Jaishankar is expected to reach Parliament through the Rajya Sabha route.
BJP's Pralhad Joshi and Shiv Sena's Arvind Sawant will also become Union ministers for the the first time.
Anurag Singh Thakur, Bihar BJP chief Nityanand Rai, former Kerala unit chief V Muraleedharan are also among those who have become part of the Union Council of ministers for the first time.
Other BJP MPs who have become ministers for the first time include Suresh Angadi (Karnataka), Rattan Lal Kataria (Haryana), Renuka Singh Saruta (Chhattisgarh), Som Prakash (Punjab), Rameswar Teli (Assam), Pratap Chandra Sarangi (Odisha), Kailash Choudhary (Rajasthan) and Debasree Chaudhuri (West Bengal).
Besides Prime Minister Narendra Modi, there are 57 ministers in the newly sworn-in Union Council of ministers.
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ICC awaits PCB’s decision on Hybrid Model for Champions Trophy after India decline to travel
Karachi, Nov 11: The International Cricket Council has sought a response from the Pakistan Cricket Board on hosting the Champions Trophy in a hybrid model following India's refusal to travel to the country for the tournament.
The PCB on Sunday had confirmed that it received an email from the ICC that India declined to travel to the neighbouring country.
“Unless the PCB decides to pull out of hosting the Champions Trophy the current plan is to hold India’s matches in UAE and the final in Dubai,” a source told PTI on Monday.
“The Indian Cricket Board has told the ICC that a Hybrid Model is acceptable to them only if the final is held in Dubai and not in Pakistan,” the source added.
The PCB on Monday remained silent without giving any reaction to the BCCI informing the ICC it will not send its team to play in Pakistan in the Champions Trophy.
But according to sources, the ICC has asked the PCB to confirm if a Hybrid Model -- where India’s matches and the final would be held in Dubai -- is acceptable to them.
The ICC has assured the PCB that, under this arrangement, they would receive full hosting fees and a majority of the matches.
“The ICC has told the PCB that if it decides to go ahead with the hosting of the mega event on a Hybrid Model it would get its full hosting fees and majority of the matches,” the source said.
However, if the PCB decides to pull out of hosting the tournament due to India's refusal, the ICC could consider moving the entire event to South Africa, the source added.
Earlier, a PCB source had said there was "no talk" of a Hybrid Model as of now and they would seek further clarity from the ICC.
"There is no talk about having the Champions Trophy on a Hybrid Model system as of now," a reliable PCB source told PTI.
"An email is to be sent to the ICC with the advice of its legal department in which the Board wanted clarifications from the ICC on the Indian decision," the source said.
"As of now the entire situation is being gauged by the PCB. No decision has been taken on the next step. Yes the PCB is in touch with the government for consultation and directives if required," the source added.
Meanwhile, Pakistani media speculated on potential responses, including the Pakistan government advising the PCB to avoid playing India altogether or the PCB pursuing legal action against the ICC and BCCI at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Geneva.
India have not travelled to Pakistan since the 2008 Mumbai terror strikes. The two teams compete against each other only in ICC tournaments.
