ITANAGAR, May 19 � Senior Congress leader Nabam Tuki was last evening sworn-in as the eighth Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh for the second consecutive tenure days after he led his party to retain power in the recently held Assembly polls by getting an absolute majority.
He was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Lt Gen (Rtd) Nirbhay Sharma in a brief ceremony held here at the Durbar Hall of Raj Bhavan late last evening.
Among others, AICC general secretary in-charge of Arunachal Pradesh Luizinho Faleiro, APCC president Mukut Mithi, newly-elected legislators including former Chief Minister Jarbom Gamlin, Speaker Wanglin Lowangdong and Deputy Speaker Jomde Kena, and top-ranking government officials were present at the function.
Earlier, Tuki was unanimously elected as the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader in a meeting held at Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan, the State headquarters of the party. His name for the top post was proposed by former Minister Chowna Mein and seconded by Tanga Byaling.
Soon after his swearing-in, Tuki, elected unopposed for second time after 2004 from Sagalee Assembly constituency, told reporters that his new government�s top most priority will be to work for development of communication in the land-locked hilly State, youth development and employment generation, and to execute all the on-going projects on health and education sectors.
While asserting that peace was the pre-requisite for development, he said providing security to one and all will be another top priority area of his government.
Starting off his political innings in 1995 as a grassroot worker, the 50-year-old Tuki, reached the pinnacle of his political career on November 1, 2011 becoming the first Chief Minister from Nyishi community (replacing his predecessor Jarbom Gamlin).
Born on July 7, 1964 at Ompuli village under Sagalee sub-division in Papum Pare district, Tuki was first elected to the State Assembly in 1995 from Sagalee constituency and was inducted in the Gegong Apang Ministry as Deputy Minister of Agriculture before being elevated to the post of Minister, Irrigation & Flood Control in 1996 and then Minister of Transport & Civil Aviation in 1998.
Father of seven, including five daughters, soft-spoken Tuki was re-elected from the same seat in 1999 and got the Cabinet berth in Mukut Mithi Govt as the Minister of Environment and Forests.
Subsequently, he was elected un-opposed to the Assembly in the 2004 polls and inducted in Apang Ministry.
Prior to entering electoral politics, Tuki held various positions in the State unit of NSUI. He had served the Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee in various capacities from 1995 to 2008 before becoming its president after the death of incumbent, Omem Moyong Deori in 2007.
