Gamlin sworn in as Arunachal chief minister

Senior Congress leader and Arunachal Pradesh power minister Jarbom Gamlin was sworn-in as the new chief minister by Governor JJ Singh at a hurriedly convened sombre oath-taking ceremony at the Raj Bhawan in Itanagar late on Thursday.

Senior Congress leader and Arunachal Pradesh power minister Jarbom Gamlin was sworn-in as the new chief minister by Governor JJ Singh at a hurriedly convened sombre oath-taking ceremony at the Raj Bhawan in Itanagar late on Thursday.

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The swearing-in was necessitated by the death of Dorjee Khandu in a helicopter crash Saturday. His body, however, was retrieved from the crash site only Thursday morning.

Although six names emerged, it was Gamlin who got the nod from Congress president Sonia Gandhi around 9pm on Thursday.

Four central ministers - V Narayanswamy, Mukul Wasnik, Salman Khurshid and Bijoy Krishan Handique - were present at the swearing-in ceremony.

Gamlin is a former Lok Sabha MP. As the power minister, he was instrumental in roping in several power giants to invest in setting up hydro-power projects in the state.

"I am committed to carrying forward the good pro-people policies of Dorjee Khandu. I am sad indeed to take oath on a day when his body was retrieved from the crash site," Gamlin said soon after being sworn in.

"I would be laying emphasis on infrastructure development, especially roads to improve connectivity in the state," he said.