Bhubaneswar, November 21: Union Minister and senior BJP leader Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday received a grand welcome at Bhubaneswar airport following the NDA's resounding victory in the Bihar Assembly elections.

It is Pradhan’s first visit to the State after NDA registered an emphatic win, with BJP emerging the single largest-party in Bihar.

A large number of BJP leaders, workers and supporters turned out in large numbers at the airport to welcome Pradhan and celebrate his instrumental and crucial role in the electoral success in Bihar.

BJP central leadership has deputed Pradhan to Bihar as the the election in-charge for the crucial Assembly elections for his organisational skills, grassroots connect, and strategic leadership

As the election in-charge, Pradhan is widely acknowledged as one of the principal strategists behind a decisive mandate for NDA in Bihar.

The NDA Government returned to power in Bihar with 202 seats in the 243-member State Assembly. The BJP emerged as the single-largest party with 89 seats, followed by JD(U) with 85. Among the smaller allies, LJP(RV) won 19 seats, HAM-S 5 and RLM 4.

On Thursday, Nitish Kumar, 71, took oath as the Chief Minister of Bihar for a record 10th term at a grand ceremony in Patna, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and CMs of several NDA-ruled States and senior alliance leaders.