Not two, Udhayanidhi no 3 in the cabinet, says govt order on TN Cabinet pecking order

CHENNAI: Even after his re-designation as the Deputy Chief Minister, Udhayanidhi Stalin will be number three after DMK veteran and Water Resources Minister Duraimurugan.

An order to this effect was issued by Chief Secretary N Muruganandam on September 29 after the induction of the new Ministers in the Council of Ministers and the allocation of subjects among the Ministers.

As per the order, Deputy CM Udhayanidhi has been ranked third in the inter-se seniority of the Council of Ministers of Tamil Nadu, next to Chief Minister MK Stalin and Water Resources Minister Duraimurugan.

Appropriate changes were also made on the State government's official website where portfolios of the Ministers were changed in accordance with the recommendation of the Chief Minister approved by the Raj Bhavan.

Attending his first official government event after his elevation, Udhayanidhi did not disappoint his Cabinet colleagues and bureaucrats at the monsoon preparedness meet chaired by Chief Minister Stalin at the state secretariat this morning when he flagged the issue of interlinking of storm water drain works in the city.

The deputy CM caught officials and ministers concerned off guard when he questioned the status of storm water drain interlinking in select areas and the measures undertaken at low-lying areas in the city prone to flooding, and the evacuation plan to protect people of vulnerable areas.

Later, he also attended the maiden government event individually in his capacity as the deputy CM at Kalaivanar Arangam where he distributed State-level 'Manimegalai' awards to women on behalf of Tamil Nadu Women Development Corporation. He also distributed loans worth Rs 30.20 crore to 6,135 members of 516 women Self Help Groups in the city.