Ramesh appointed convener of AICC convener of special group

New Delhi: Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh was on Saturday named as the Convener of a ‘Special Group’ of AICC set up to facilitate and coordinate actions for the coming Lok Sabha elections.

Ramesh had resigned from the government ahead of the 2009 Lok Sabha polls to devote time for party work. There had been indications that the Union Minister could again quit the government as the next Lok Sabha elections near.

Ahead of assembly elections to five states, Ramesh was recently assigned greater responsibility within the Congress. He was asked to ensure effective implementation of the party manifesto in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram and Jharkhand. He was made chairman of the manifesto implementation committees for four states.

This is in addition to the lead role Ramesh plays in charting out the party’s strategy on key government schemes and identifying future challenges.