Maharashtra first state to have Minorities Dept

MUMBAI: Maharashtra has become the first state in the country to set up a separate Minorities Development Department.

Minorities Development Department has become the 30th Department of Maharashtra government, with a notification being issued for the same, an official release said on Monday.

The notification has been issued in the backdrop of an announcement by Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh in winter session of state legislature last year.

The Department would look after several initiatives for welfare of minorities, including the Prime Minister's 15- point programme coordination, state minorities commission, state Haj and Wakf bodies and Urdu, Sindhi, Hindi and Gujarati academies.

The department will also be responsible for implementation of approved recommendations of the Justice Sachar committee.