Deccan Herald, Wednesday 7 March 2012

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, MAY 21, DHNS:

P K Jayalakshmi, the newly-elected Congress MLA from Mananthavadi in Wayanad district and the only woman MLA in the UDF, will be Kerala’s first Scheduled Tribe (ST) minister.

A member of the Kurichia community and unmarried, Jayalakshmi, 29, is a former state and university archery champion. She is the only woman in the 38-member Congress legislature party.

Jayalakshmi was stunned when she was handpicked by Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi during a talent search among Youth Congress activists a few months ago. Congress leaders say that it was her works in the grassroots level that attracted the party. […]

“My ministership is a recognition for the Scheduled Tribes and other backward communities in the state,’’ she said.

Source: Archery star to be Kerala’s first tribal minister
Address : http://www.deccanherald.com/content/163257/archery-star-keralas-first-tribal.html
Date Visited: Wed Mar 07 2012 18:07:38 GMT+0100 (CET)

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