Puducherry is all set to write a history as the state will be getting a first woman minister after four decades. Rangasamy-led NR Congress party has formed a new government and the ministers will be sworn in on Sunday. NR Congress - BJP alliance had secured a victory in the recently held assembly polls and after the episodes of hectic talks, Rangasamy has assumed the office of the Chief Minister of Puducherry. 

According to reports, NR Congress party's MLA Chandira Priyanga, who was elected for the second consecutive time from the Nedungadu reserved constituency in Puducherry, will become the first woman minister of the state after four decades. Priyanga will be one of the five ministers in the Puducherry cabinet. 

On Friday, the President of India had approved the list of ministers to be inducted into the cabinet led by Rangasamy. The Chief Minister had moved his list to Lieutenant Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan and the four other ministers are - A Namassivayam (BJP), K Lakshminarayanan (NR Congress), C Djeacoumar (NR Congress), and AK Sai Saravanan Kumar (BJP). 

The cabinet ministers were named after hectic lobbying among the NR Congress and BJP leaders for the ministerial berths. The ministers will be sworn-in to the respective offices on Sunday and the swearing-in ceremony will be held between 2.30 pm and 3.15 pm and Lieutenant Governor Tamilisai Soundarajan will be administering the oath to the ministers. 

The reports say that Namassivayam, Lakshminarayanan, and Djeacoumar had served as cabinet ministers previously whereas Chandira Priyanga and Saravanan Kumar are first-time ministers.  Namassivayam had joined the BJP ahead of the polls after dissenting with the Congress party. He was the second in command in the Narayansamy-led Congress government from 2016-2021 after which he quitted the party. 

Djeacoumar had served as a local administration minister in the DMK-TMC coalition government led by RV Janikaraman between 1996 to 1999. The last woman minister in Puducherry was Congress party's Renuka Appadurai and she had served as the minister of education in the DMK-led coalition government led by the then Chief Minister MDR Ramachandran from 1980 to 1983. Chandira Priyanga will now become the first woman minister in Puducherry after four decades.