Former chief secretary J Alexander, who was inducted into the State Cabinet today, is the first IAS officer-turned politician in the State to become a Cabinet minister.
Sixty-five year old Mr Alexander, born in Kerala, served as chief secretary to Karnataka government before entering politics.
He was elected to the Legislative Assembly in 1999 from Bharatinagar constituency in Bangalore city.
Similarly, 54-year-old T B Jayachandra, who was re-inducted into the state Cabinet, has represented Kallambella in the Legislative Assembly four times. Mr Jayachandra, who was serving as agriculture minister in the S M Krishna Cabinet, was dropped from the Cabinet and given a new role of states special representative in Delhi to expedite the process of obtaining clearances for the states projects from the Centre.
Speaking to reporters after being sworn in, both expressed happiness over getting ministerial berths. Mr Alexander said he would discharge his ministerial responsibilities honestly, while Mr Jayachandra said he would use his Delhi experience to good use in his new role as minister.
