Political Information : Punjab

Punjab Government

The government and administration in Punjab is controlled on the same lines as in other states of the country. The state follows a unicameral system of government i.e. it has only one house – the Punjab Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) consists of 117 members. Punjab has 13 seats in the Lok Sabha – the lower house of Parliament. Like all other states of India, the head of the state is the Governor, appointed by the President of India. His or her post is largely ceremonial. The Chief Minister is headed by a group of ministers with independent power. The Chief Minister is the head of government and is vested with most of the executive powers.

The structure of the state government is as follow:

Governor
Gen. (Retd.) S.F Rodrigues, PVSM, VSM
Pb. Raj Bhawan, Sector 6, Chandigarh
Ph: 0172-2740740 (O & R)

Chief Minister
Captain Amarinder Singh
45, Sector 2, Chandigarh,
Phone: 0172-2740325, 2740769 (O)

List of Cabinet Ministers

Mrs Rajinder Kaur Bhattal
Deputy Chief Minister

Mr Lal Singh
Cabinet Minister for Food & Civil Supplies, Rural Dev & Panchayats, Jails and Civil Aviation

Mr Raghunath Sahay Puri
Cabinet Minister for Transport

Mr Jagmohan Singh Kang
Cabinet Minister for Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development Tourism & Fisheries

Mr Sardool Singh
Cabinet Minister for Excise and Taxation, Printing and Stationery

Mr. Amarjit Singh Samra
Cabinet Minister for Cooperation and NRIs

Mr. Mohinder Singh Kaypee
Cabinet Minister for Welfare of SCs & BCs, Social Security & Dev of Women & Children and Information Technology

Mr. Avtar Henry
Cabinet Minister for Industries & Commerce and Environment

Mr Ramesh Chander Dogra
Cabinet Minister for Technical Education

Mr Partap Singh Bajwa
Cabinet Minister for PWD (B&R), School Education

Harnam Dass Johar
Cabinet Minister for Public Health

Mr Surinder Singla
Cabinet Minister for Finance and Planning, Institutional Finance and Banking, Health & Family Welfare

Chaudhary Jagjit Singh
Cabinet Minister for Local Government, Parliamentary Affairs, Elections and Labour & Employment

Mr Jasjit Singh Randhawa
Cabinet Minister for Revenue & Rehabilitation, Relief & Resettlement
Minister of State

Mr Rakesh Kumar Pandey
State Minister for Horticulture (Independent Charge), Science & Technology (Independent Charge)

Ms. Gurkanwal Kaur
Minister of State for Cultural Affairs, Archives & Museums (Independent charge), Industrial Training (Independent charge)

Mr Hans Raj Josan
Minister of State for Forests (Independent Charge), Irrigation (Attached with Deputy CM)

Chief Secretary
Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi

Local Government

The state has a well maintained local government both at urban and rural areas. In urban areas there are bodies like Municipal Corporations, Municipalities, and Notified Area Committees responsible for conservancy, local health laws, and approving building plans in their local jurisdiction. In rural areas, there is the usual set up of village panchayats, panchayat samitis and zilla parishads though, in practice, they do not wield administrative or legal powers of any

The Judiciary

The judiciary and the executive are separated in Punjab as in other states in the country. However, the state shares a common High Court with the state of Haryana and the Union Territory of Chandigarh. At district level there are lower courts presided over by a judge. The district court is the principal court of civil jurisdiction. This is also a court of Sessions. Sessions-triable cases are tried by the Sessions Court. Session court has the power to impose any sentence including capital punishment.