Chennai,  Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has appointed 14 district in-charge ministers in the state ahead of urban local body polls slated to be held within four months.

 

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leadership wants to carry forward the back-to-back wins it has had in the 2021 Assembly polls and the rural local body elections in nine districts.

With the North-East monsoon expected to hit the state by October 27, the Chief Minister has appointed 14 ministers of his cabinet as in charges of 16 districts. In days to come, the Chief Minister, according to highly placed sources, will appoint in-charge ministers in all districts.

The ministers are given responsibility of districts to monitor the welfare schemes of the government, to expedite developmental works as well as to undertake emergency works in the likelihood of natural calamities. The ministers would also have to take stock of the possibilities of communicable diseases breaking out during the monsoon period.

Sources in the DMK told IANS that the idea is to motivate the cadres at the grassroots levels for the urban local body polls and to get proper feedback on the exact requirements of each municipality. The DMK is also planning to manage the monsoon without any hassles and thereby improving its image among the people of the state. The party, in a brainstorming session of its top leaders, found that the presence of a minister in charge of a district would help the government properly reach out to the grassroots.