Chandigarh: Bhagawant Mann takes oath as Chief Minister of Punjab. He promises to fulfil all assurances given during the elections campaign. 

The 17th Chief Minister of Punjab has taken oath at  Khatkar Kalam, the ancestral village of legendary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district. Elaborate arrangements have been to make function grand success.

Punjab Governor  Banwarilal Purohit administered the oath of secrecy to the new Chief Minister. Mann alone takes oath today. 

Over 4  lakh people have attended the oath-taking ceremony, The Aam Aadmi Party has registered landslide victory by winning 92 seats in the 117 member Punjab Assembly. Mann is the first non-Congress and Non-Akali Chief Minister of Punjab. 

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia are prominent leaders were attended the oath-taking ceremony.

AAP’s historic win has stunned political pundits and poll analysts. Uprooting all elections arithmetic AAP has to decimate the Congress and the SAD-BSP combine.

Mann, the Chief Minister-designate, had invited the people of the state to attend his oath-taking ceremony, saying it's not he alone, but 3 crore people of Punjab will also take the oath with him. He urged men to wear 'Basanti' (yellow) colour turbans and women to wear Basanti 'dupatta'.

Officials said full-proof security arrangements have been made for the ceremony and several senior officials, including Inspector General and Senior Superintendent Police rank officers, have been deputed for the event.

Around 8,000 to 10,000 security personnel have been deployed for the event, said the officials. The venue is spread over 50 acres of land with another 50 acres earmarked for parking of vehicles, said the officials. Over 50 acres of standing crops have been grounded to make arrangements for the oath-taking function. Villagers had to clear out about 40 acres of wheat fields to make way for parking space ahead of the ceremony

Apart from the smooth movement of the traffic, a major thrust shall be laid on ensuring that people coming to the function do not face any problem, said the officials.

The district administration has declared a holiday for schools on March 16 in view of the huge gathering expected for the swearing-in ceremony.

Civil Surgeon Davinder Dhanda said services of health staff of adjoining 10 districts and nearly 30 ambulances would be deployed to meet any health emergencies. Twelve first-aid teams would also be there to provide emergency first-aid, he told reporters.

Punjab Chief Secretary Anirudh Tiwari, director-general of police VK Bhawra, and additional chief secretary to the CM A Venu Prasad had reviewed the arrangements on Monday.

The district police have released a route plan for people who would be arriving from different parts of the state. Devotees who earlier used to reach Sri Anandpur Sahib for Holla Mohalla celebrations via the Banga-Garhshankar route have now been asked to follow the Phagwara-Mehitana-Garshankar route by the police in view of the event.

Channi is not invited: Former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi has also not been invited to the ceremony. However, all 117 MLAs have been invited besides people close to Bhagwant Mann, who include several artists associated with Punjab.