Bhubaneswar: Minister of ST/SC Development, Minorities & Backward Class Welfare Department Jagannath Saraka said work for welfare of adivasis will be taken up on priority basis.
Speaking to media persons he said maximum villages have already be provided with water and roads, measures will be taken to take these facilities to all the villages, said the two-time MLA from Bissam-Cuttack in Rayagada district.
Saraka, a known tribal leader, was the first to be sworn-in as he is named after Lord Jagannath, BJD sources said.
He was holding the same portfolio in the capacity of MoS in the fifth term of Naveen government.
Born in Munda village of Jhigidi panchayat in Bissam Cuttack, he studied Law and started career as an advocate. He joined politics and contested as a Samiti member in 1997. He was elected sarpanch in 2002 and to Zilla Parishad in 2007.