Names of 9 ministries changed by the new government in Tamil Nadu

The MK Stalin led DMK government in Tamil Nadu has renamed nine of the 34 ministries. Explaining the name change, Stalin said it was because functions, challenges, government’s targets and ideals have considerably changed over the times. Perhaps the most profound change was creating a separate ministry called Water Resources to fulfil the water needs of the state. The new ministry will ensure water for farmers’ needs, augment groundwater, desilt and maintain water bodies, and remove encroachments.

The nine ministries that have been renamed are as follows:

Agriculture to Agriculture and Farmers Welfare

Environment to Environment – Climate Change

Health to Medical and Family Welfare

Fisheries to Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare

Labour Welfare to Labour Welfare and Skill Development

Information and Public Relations to Information and Publicity

Social Welfare to Social Welfare and Women’s Empowerment

Personnel and Administrative Reforms to Human Resources Management

Non-Resident Indians to Non-Resident Tamils Welfare

Stalin said that the changes were based on international best practices and proposed with the loftiest aims.

What Stalin may have not suspected is that in renaming the Health Ministry to the Medical Ministry he was only doing it the second time – 50 years ago, the party’s Treasurer and matinee idol MG Ramachandran (MGR) supposedly described the portfolio as such.

At the time of the 1971 general elections, MGR was shooting in Kashmir for Idhaya Veenai (Heart’s Veena, 1972). After the results were declared, he reached Delhi on March 14 and, according to Karunanidhi, hurriedly telephoned him suggesting that he consult him on ministry-making, subtly hinting that he wished to be ‘Medical Minister (sic)’ or Health Minister. Karunanidhi indicated that they could discuss anything that MGR wished once he reached Madras. MGR refuted this as fiction.