Agartala, July 08: It was a historic moment, indeed. The small Northeastern state Tripura for the first time saw a permanent resident of the state taking oath as a Central Minister.
She assumed office in New Delhi as the Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment on Thursday.
Popular as ‘Didi’ and a first-term BJP Member of Parliament (MP) from West Tripura Lok Sabha constituency- Pratima Bhowmik was on Wednesday sworn-in as the central minister.
President of India Ram Nath Kovind administered the oath of office and secrecy to all the new ministers including Bhowmik.
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi picked up Bhowmik in his cabinet, it scripted a history for Tripura because she is the first woman as well as the first permanent resident of the state to become a central minister.
After taking the oath, Bhowmik on her official Facebook handle wrote, "How enormously blessed I feel Hon'ble PM Shri Narendra Modi ji for your faith in me. This is the biggest day in my life, and I so fondly cherish your generous affection. I assure you we shall leave no stone unturned to carry forward your vision of taking our Nation to greater heights."
Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb, Deputy Chief Minister Jishnu Dev Verma and many other party leaders congratulated Bhowmik after her elevation in the central council of ministers.
52-year-old Bhowmik was elected as an MP from West Tripura Lok Sabha constituency with a huge margin of votes in May 2019. She had joined BJP in 1991 and since then she continued to work for the party with full devotion.
Graduated in Bio Science from Women’s College, Bhowmik came from a humble background and gradually she emerged as a symbol of Nari Shakti in Tripura.
Earlier Santosh Mohan Deb and Dr. Triguna Sen had represented Tripura as central ministers but none of them were residents of Tripura. Pratima Bhowmik's entry in the central ministry as the first permanent resident of Tripura scripted a golden history.
Before taking charge of her office, Bhowmik paid tributes to Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyaya and Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee at the party office.
After assuming her office at Shastri Bhawan, C-Wing, New Delhi, the union minister extended her gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“Took charge as MoS, Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry today. Once again from the core of my heart, I extend my gratitude to Hon’ble PM Shri Narendra Modi ji for entrusting me this responsibility,” she wrote on her official Facebook handle.
While celebrations broke out in various parts of the state with people bursting fire crackers following her induction as a central minister, she was flooded with greetings/ good wishes coming from many people including eminent figures on the social media platforms.
Meanwhile, the Tripura state unit of Bharatiya Janata Party has congratulated Pratima Bhowmik on her entry in the central ministry as well as extended gratitude to the Prime Minister for making her the Minister of State.