After the chief minister presented a bouquet to Malik, the new governor embraced him. The same bonhomie was seen with Sushil Modi, who was standing next to Nitish.
Assembly Speaker Vijay Kumar Chaudhary and senior cabinet ministers Nand Kishore Yadav, Prem Kumar, Krishnandan Varma and Maheshwar Hazari were among those who welcomed Malik and presented him with flowers.
After a brief ceremony at the state hanger of the airport where Malik was given guard of honour, the new Bihar governor headed for the Raj Bhavan.
He will be the 38th governor of the state.
West Bengal Governor Keshri Nath Tripathi had been holding additional charge of Bihar after the elevation of Ramnath Kovind as President.