View source for Union Cabinet/ Council of Ministers, India (2019-24)

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=Biographical details=
==Ministers from Rajya, Lok Sabha, 2014/ 19==
[[File: 2014, 2019- Ministers from Rajya, Lok Sabha, First time MPs who became ministers.jpg| 2014, 2019 <br/> Ministers from Rajya, Lok Sabha, <br/> First time MPs who became ministers <br/> From: [https://epaper.timesgroup.com/olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL%2F2019%2F05%2F31&entity=Ar00102&sk=84BF5273&mode=image  May 31, 2019: ''The Times of India'']|frame|500px]]

''' See graphic ''' :

'' 2014, 2019 <br/> Ministers from Rajya, Lok Sabha, <br/> First time MPs who became ministers ''

==Those inducted, and those dropped==
[[File: 2019- Those who were inducted into the Union Cabinet, and those who were dropped.jpg| 2019: Those who were inducted into the Union Cabinet, and those who were dropped <br/> From: [https://epaper.timesgroup.com/olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL%2F2019%2F05%2F31&entity=Ar00101&sk=AA1362F6&mode=image  May 31, 2019: ''The Times of India'']|frame|500px]]

''' See graphic ''' :

'' 2019: Those who were inducted into the Union Cabinet, and those who were dropped ''

==Party, gender, assets, age and ‘house’ of ministers==
[[File: 2019- The party, gender, assets, age and ‘house’ (upper, lower) of ministers.jpg|2019- The party, gender, assets, age and ‘house’ (upper, lower) of ministers <br/> From: [https://epaper.timesgroup.com/olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL%2F2019%2F05%2F31&entity=Ar01400&sk=3FAC9E42&mode=text  May 31, 2019: ''The Times of India'']|frame|500px]]

''' See graphic ''' :

'' 2019: The party, gender, assets, age and ‘house’ (upper/ lower) of ministers ''

[[Category:India|U UNION CABINET/ COUNCIL OF MINISTERS, INDIA (2019-24)UNION CABINET/ COUNCIL OF MINISTERS, INDIA (2019-24)
UNION CABINET/ COUNCIL OF MINISTERS, INDIA (2019-24)]]
[[Category:Politics|U UNION CABINET/ COUNCIL OF MINISTERS, INDIA (2019-24)UNION CABINET/ COUNCIL OF MINISTERS, INDIA (2019-24)
UNION CABINET/ COUNCIL OF MINISTERS, INDIA (2019-24)]]

==The states that are represented in the cabinet==
[https://epaper.timesgroup.com/olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL%2F2019%2F05%2F31&entity=Ar01600&sk=D7D34F87&mode=text  May 31, 2019: ''The Times of India'']

''' 20 of 29 states find place in Team Modi, UP gets rewarded with nine berths '''


Uttar Pradesh, which sent the highest number of 64 MPs from the ruling alliance to the 17th Lok Sabha, on Thursday got the biggest representation in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s council of ministers. Nine of the 58 ministers are from the state, including the PM who represents Varanasi, followed by eight from Maharashtra and five from Bihar.

Among bigger states, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala could not get any ministerial berth though V Muraleedharan, who represents Maharashtra in Rajya Sabha is Kerala BJP chief.

Twenty of the total 29 states have got one or more ministerial berths. Besides Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, the other states that could not get ministerial representation are from the north-east — Sikkim, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Meghalaya.

BJP, in fact, could not open its account in Andhra Pradesh this year where 22 of the total 25 parliamentary seats went in favour of YSR Congress while the remaining three went to TDP.

Karnataka has four ministers while Rajasthan, Haryana and Gujarat have three each. Punjab, Jharkhand and West Bengal get two each.

Among the states which will see assembly polls this year, Maharashtra got maximum of eight ministers, Haryana three and Jharkhand two. Former chief minister of Jharkhand Arjun Munda got a Cabinet berth. West Bengal, where BJP did remarkably well picking up 18 seats and is eyeing the 2021 assembly polls, got two ministerial berths.

Four out of nine ministers, including the PM, from Uttar Pradesh are of Cabinet rank — Rajnath Singh, Smriti Irani, and Mahendra Nath Pandey being the others.

Maharashtra too got four ministers of Cabinet rank — Nitin Gadkari, Prakash Javadekar, Piyush Goyal and Arvind Ganpat Sawant (MP from south Mumbai). Javadekar and Goyal are Rajya Sabha MPs. Other than Sawant, three of the four were Cabinet ministers during Modi’s first term.
Bihar has two Cabinet ministers — Ravi Shankar Prasad and Giriraj Singh — besides Ramvilas Paswan (LJP), who is not an MP. NDA won 39 of the 40 parliamentary seats from the state. While BJP won the highest number of seats (17), its allies JD(U) won 16 and LJP bagged
6. JD(U), however, on Thursday decided not to join the Modi Cabinet due to differences over number of ministerial berths.

Harsh Vardhan, MP from Chandni Chowk in Delhi, is the lone minister from the Capital. Vardhan was the minister of environment and science & technology in the outgoing ministry.

Though he was initially made the health minister, his portfolio was later changed to accommodate J P Nadda. Nadda, however, is not in the ministry this time amid buzz that he might be given the responsibility of the party after induction of party chief Amit Shah in the Cabinet.

==Caste composition==
[https://epaper.timesgroup.com/olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL%2F2019%2F05%2F31&entity=Ar01616&sk=B442058A&mode=text  May 31, 2019: ''The Times of India'']

PM Narendra Modi tried to accommodate representatives of most castes in his Council of Ministers but upper castes got a dominant presence, bagging 32 of the 58 berths. Ministers from Other Backward Classes, a crucial political constituency, numbered 13.

Nine Brahmin leaders have found place in the Union cabinet, including Nitin Gadkari. Three Thakur leaders also made it, including Rajnath Singh, Jodhpur MP Gajendra Singh Thakur and Morena MP Narendra Singh Tomar. Dharmendra Pradhan remains a prominent OBC face in the cabinet, besides Modi himself.

Of the 58 MPs sworn in as ministers, six belonged to the Scheduled Castes and four to the Scheduled Tribes, mostly from Odisha and Jharkhand. Akali Dal leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal and BJP’s Hardeep Puri were the two Sikhs while Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi was the lone Muslim to take oath.

Caste-balance continues to play a key role even as BJP maintains that the verdict of the Lok Sabha polls showed blurring of caste as a factor in voting, even in the Hindi heartland states of UP and Bihar.

Presence of nine Brahmin leaders with Cabinet rank is being seen as a strong message to the community, which has strongly supported the party despite perceived reservations against appointment of Yogi Adityanath as UP CM. BJP’s UP unit president Mahendra Nath Pandey has been inducted as a cabinet minister, apparently to assuage the community.

Arjun Munda’s entry as cabinet minister is yet another signal to the tribal community in Jharkhand, which goes to polls later this year. Incumbent CM in the state Raghubar Das is a non-tribal, but the party won several tribal-dominated constituencies including Dumka, where its candidate defeated JMM patriarch Shibu Soren.

=As in 2019, May=
==Prime Minister==
[[Narendra Modi]]  
==The complete list==
[https://www.pmindia.gov.in/en/news_updates/portfolios-of-the-union-council-of-ministers-2/   ''PMIndia'']


{| border="1"
| colspan="3" valign="top" |
Prime Minister
|-
| colspan="2" valign="top" |
Shri Narendra Modi
| valign="top" |
Prime Minister and also in-charge of:Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions;Department of Atomic Energy;Department of Space;All important policy issues; andAll other portfolios not allocated to any Minister.
|-
| colspan="3" valign="top" |
Cabinet Ministers
|-
| valign="top" |
1
| valign="top" |
Shri Raj Nath Singh
| valign="top" |
Minister of Defence
|-
| valign="top" |
2
| valign="top" |
Shri Amit Shah
| valign="top" |
Minister of Home Affairs
|-
| valign="top" |
3
| valign="top" |
Shri Nitin Jairam Gadkari
| valign="top" |
Minister of Road Transport and Highways andMinister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
|-
| valign="top" |
4
| valign="top" |
Shri D. V. Sadananda Gowda
| valign="top" |
Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers.
|-
| valign="top" |
5
| valign="top" |
Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman
| valign="top" |
Minister of Finance andMinister of Corporate Affairs.
|-
| valign="top" |
6
| valign="top" |
Shri Narendra Singh Tomar
| valign="top" |
Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare;Minister of Rural Development;Minister of Panchayati Raj; andMinister of Food Processing Industries.
|-
| valign="top" |
7
| valign="top" |
Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad
| valign="top" |
Minister of Law and Justice;Minister of Communications; andMinister of Electronics and Information Technology.
|-
| valign="top" |
8
| valign="top" |
Shri Thaawar Chand Gehlot
| valign="top" |
Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment.
|-
| valign="top" |
9
| valign="top" |
Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar
| valign="top" |
Minister of External Affairs.
|-
| valign="top" |
10
| valign="top" |
Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal â€˜Nishankâ€™
| valign="top" |
Minister of Education.
|-
| valign="top" |
11
| valign="top" |
Shri Arjun Munda
| valign="top" |
Minister of Tribal Affairs.
|-
| valign="top" |
12
| valign="top" |
Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani
| valign="top" |
Minister of Women and Child Development; andMinister of Textiles.
|-
| valign="top" |
13
| valign="top" |
Dr. Harsh Vardhan
| valign="top" |
Minister of Health and Family Welfare;Minister of Science and Technology; andMinister of Earth Sciences.
|-
| valign="top" |
14
| valign="top" |
Shri Prakash Javadekar
| valign="top" |
Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change;Minister of Information and Broadcasting; andMinister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprise.
|-
| valign="top" |
15
| valign="top" |
Shri Piyush Goyal
| valign="top" |
Minister of Railways;Minister of Commerce and Industry; andMinister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution.
|-
| valign="top" |
16
| valign="top" |
Shri Dharmendra Pradhan
| valign="top" |
Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas; andMinister of Steel.
|-
| valign="top" |
17
| valign="top" |
Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
| valign="top" |
Minister of Minority Affairs.
|-
| valign="top" |
18
| valign="top" |
Shri Pralhad Joshi
| valign="top" |
Minister of Parliamentary Affairs;Minister of Coal andMinister of Mines.
|-
| valign="top" |
19
| valign="top" |
Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey
| valign="top" |
Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.
|-
| valign="top" |
20
| valign="top" |
Shri Giriraj Singh
| valign="top" |
Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandryand Dairying.
|-
| valign="top" |
21
| valign="top" |
Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat
| valign="top" |
Minister of Jal Shakti.
|-
| colspan="3" valign="top" |
Ministers of State (Independent Charge)
|-
| valign="top" |
1
| valign="top" |
Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar
| valign="top" |
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
|-
| valign="top" |
2
| valign="top" |
Rao Inderjit Singh
| valign="top" |
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation andMinister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Planning.
|-
| valign="top" |
3
| valign="top" |
Shri Shripad Yesso Naik
| valign="top" |
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) andMinister of State in the Ministry of Defence.
|-
| valign="top" |
4
| valign="top" |
Dr. Jitendra Singh
| valign="top" |
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region;Minister of State in the Prime Ministerâ€™s Office;Minister of State in the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions;Minister of State in the Department of Atomic Energy andMinister of State in the Department of Space.
|-
| valign="top" |
5
| valign="top" |
Shri Kiren Rijiju
| valign="top" |
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports andMinister of State in the Ministry of Minority Affairs.
|-
| valign="top" |
6
| valign="top" |
Shri Prahalad Singh Patel
| valign="top" |
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Culture andMinister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Tourism.
|-
| valign="top" |
7
| valign="top" |
Shri Raj Kumar Singh
| valign="top" |
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Power;Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy andMinister of State in the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.
|-
| valign="top" |
8
| valign="top" |
Shri Hardeep Singh Puri
| valign="top" |
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs;Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Civil Aviation andMinister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
|-
| valign="top" |
9
| valign="top" |
Shri Mansukh L. Mandaviya
| valign="top" |
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Shipping andMinister of State in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.
|-
| colspan="3" valign="top" |
Ministers of State
|-
| valign="top" |
1
| valign="top" |
Shri Faggansingh Kulaste
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Steel.
|-
| valign="top" |
2
| valign="top" |
Shri Ashwini Kumar Choubey
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
|-
| valign="top" |
3
| valign="top" |
Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs andMinister of State in the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises.
|-
| valign="top" |
4
| valign="top" |
General (Retd.) V. K. Singh
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
|-
| valign="top" |
5
| valign="top" |
Shri Krishan Pal
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
|-
| valign="top" |
6
| valign="top" |
Shri Danve Raosaheb Dadarao
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution.
|-
| valign="top" |
7
| valign="top" |
Shri G. Kishan Reddy
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs.
|-
| valign="top" |
8
| valign="top" |
Shri Parshottam Rupala
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
|-
| valign="top" |
9
| valign="top" |
Shri Ramdas Athawale
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
|-
| valign="top" |
10
| valign="top" |
Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Rural Development.
|-
| valign="top" |
11
| valign="top" |
Shri Babul Supriyo
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
|-
| valign="top" |
12
| valign="top" |
Shri Sanjeev Kumar Balyan
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries.
|-
| valign="top" |
13
| valign="top" |
Shri Dhotre Sanjay Shamrao
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Education;Minister of State in the Ministry of Communications andMinister of State in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
|-
| valign="top" |
14
| valign="top" |
Shri Anurag Singh Thakur
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance andMinister of State in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
|-
| valign="top" |
15
| valign="top" |
Shri Nityanand Rai
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs.
|-
| valign="top" |
16
| valign="top" |
Shri Rattan Lal Kataria
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Jal Shakti andMinister of State in the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
|-
| valign="top" |
17
| valign="top" |
Shri V. Muraleedharan
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of External Affairs andMinister of State in the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs.
|-
| valign="top" |
18
| valign="top" |
Smt. Renuka Singh Saruta
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
|-
| valign="top" |
19
| valign="top" |
Shri Som Parkash
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
|-
| valign="top" |
20
| valign="top" |
Shri Rameswar Teli
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Food Processing Industries.
|-
| valign="top" |
21
| valign="top" |
Shri Pratap Chandra Sarangi
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises andMinister of State in the Ministry of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries.
|-
| valign="top" |
22
| valign="top" |
Shri Kailash Choudhary
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
|-
| valign="top" |
23
| valign="top" |
Sushri Debasree Chaudhuri
| valign="top" |
Minister of State in the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
|}




==Cabinet Ministers== 
[https://epaper.timesgroup.com/olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL%2F2019%2F06%2F01&entity=Ar00101&sk=9C9DB60C&mode=text  June 1, 2019: ''The Times of India'']


Modi’s A-Team Takes Guard On A Bouncy Pitch
A look at the portfolios, powers and prospects of the 24 in the Cabinet, the nine with independent charge, and the 24 ministers of state

Amit Shah | 54

Home Affairs (New Entrant)

A key choice, indicating that issues like the Supreme Courtmandated National Register of Citizens, Citizenship (Amendment) Bill and Kashmir are on the agenda. In sync with the government’s tough stance against separatists in J&K and tough stand on terror with Pakistan. Assembly polls and the Amarnath yatra will be his first major challenges. A push for abrogation of Article 35A is certain

Nirmala Sitharaman | 59

Finance & Corporate Affairs (Earlier: Defence)

The former Jawaharlal Nehru University student breaks yet another glass ceiling, appointed India’s first full-time woman finance minister in what is seen as a reward for handling the defence ministry and countering opposition on the Rafale deal issue with a marathon speech in Parliament. Needs to immediately address concerns over economic slowdown and the non-banking financial companies crisis and get down to preparing the full budget

Rajnath Singh | 67

Defence (Earlier: Home)

Expected to carry forward defence reforms, modernisation and acquisitions. Did a competent job in Home, but MHA is now being given a sharper political focus

S Jaishankar | 64

External Affairs (New Entrant)

The biggest surprise in this government’s formation, the former foreign secretary is expected to play a crucial role in steering India past US-China and US-Russia frictions and help with the Prime Minister’s vision of building alliances across the world. Will drive trade talks with the US and Asia-Pacific countries. His domain knowledge in dealing with China should help keep ties stable and improve cooperation, in keeping with the Wuhan spirit

Piyush Goyal | 54

Railways, Commerce & Industry (Earlier: Railways)

Along with railways, tasked with revitalising investment in economy and trade. Also restores power equations between finance & commerce ministries. Gets a thumbs up from BJP brass

Nitin Gadkari | 62

Road Transport, MSME (Earlier: Road, Shipping, Water Resources & Ganga)

The Nagpur MP gets additional charge of the job-generating small-scale sector, which many feel has been ignored and continues to suffer from the impact of demonetisation and GST. The additional charge comes on the back of his performance in building highways, where the pace of award and construction increased. Seen to have a sound understanding of entrepreneurial finance, having run businesses himself, and can network with other ministries and industry. Gadkari is credited with a can-do approach that helped get stalled road projects moving. He sorted out difficult log-jams in contracts with private operators that had become a bone of contention. He is now expected to adopt a sympathetic approach to problems of finance and viability that small businesses face, particularly in the face of new aggregators with their aggressive e-commerce models

Smriti Irani | 43

Women & Child Development, Textiles

(Earlier: Textiles)

The hero of Amethi gets women and child development too. Key issues include fixing anganwadi programme, malnutrition targets and getting anti-trafficking bill passed by the Lok Sabha. She is expected to continue the textiles ministry’s focus on linking weavers and craftsmen with buyers

Ravi Shankar Prasad | 64

Law & Justice, IT (Earlier: Law & Justice, Communications & IT)

After his win from Patna Sahib, the lawyer returns to the communications ministry. A level field for telecom companies is among the top items for the industry, while consumers still complain of poor call and data quality. He also has the task of promoting the Postal Bank while pursuing judicial reforms in law and justice. Needs to ensure smooth relations with judiciary. Regulation of tech platforms, boosting local manufacturing of electronic goods will be on the table

Prakash Javadekar | 68

Environment, I&B (Earlier: HRD)

Gets back his old charges after a successful stint as HRD minister. He is expected to build on his work in making green clearances more transparent and faster. He will take up where he left on global climate change negotiations and work on issues relating to sustainable forestry in the light of faster urbanisation. Tackling air pollution and meeting India’s national climate change targets will be top priority. Expected to liaise with media using his long experience as BJP national spokesperson

Narendra Singh Tomar | 62

Rural Development & Panchayati Raj, Mines, Parliamentary Affairs

(Earlier: Agriculture, Rural Development & Panchayati Raj)

A big confidence vote for the Madhya Pradesh leader, who has been tasked with modernising farming through crop diversification and investment, which have been lagging. His ministry has to work closely with the states to implement schemes such as PM-Kisan, whose scope has been expanded. In Parliament, he will need to work across the aisles despite NDA’s big majority given the ability of the opposition to stall

Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ | 59

Human Resource Development (New entrant)

Back from the political wilderness, the former Uttarakhand chief minister will get the chance to redeem his image in a crucial ministry. Revision of curriculum (a priority of the Sangh Parivar), regulating private higher education and greater autonomy for top state universities are on the HRD ministry’s to-do list

PicturePicturePicturePicturePicturePicturePicturePicturePicture

==Those elevated, MOS, and MOS (Independent charge)==
[[File: 2019, May- India’s Union Cabinet, Council of Ministers.jpg|2019, May: India’s Union Cabinet/ Council of Ministers <br/> From: [https://epaper.timesgroup.com/olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL%2F2019%2F06%2F01&entity=Ar00200&sk=EF06AC0F&mode=image  June 1, 2019: ''The Times of India'']|frame|500px]]


'''See graphic''':

''2019, May: India’s Union Cabinet/ Council of Ministers''

=2021=
==Major changes==
[https://epaper.timesgroup.com/Olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL/2021/07/08&entity=Ar00502&sk=A16EDA39&mode=text  July 8, 2021: ''The Times of India'']

[[File: The changes made to the Union Council of Ministers in July 2021.jpg|The changes made to the Union Council of Ministers in July 2021 <br/> From: [https://epaper.timesgroup.com/Olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL/2021/07/08&entity=Ar00502&sk=A16EDA39&mode=text  July 8, 2021: ''The Times of India'']|frame|500px]]

[[File: PM Modi has sought to make the Council of Ministers younger and more diverse. A look at the composition, July 2021.jpg|PM Modi has sought to make the Council of Ministers younger and more diverse. A look at the composition, July 2021 <br/> From: [https://epaper.timesgroup.com/Olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL/2021/07/08&entity=Ar00513&sk=E4AF9EEA&mode=image  July 8, 2021: ''The Times of India'']|frame|500px]]


'''See graphics''':

'' The changes made to the Union Council of Ministers in July 2021  ''

''' PM Modi has sought to make the Council of Ministers younger and more diverse. A look at the composition, July 2021 '' 


The much-awaited Cabinet expansion turned out to be a bigger recast than expected. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday effected sweeping changes to his government, ushering in a new set of leaders in key roles with 36 fresh faces taking oath, seven others being elevated, and as many as seven cabinet and five junior ministers getting dropped.

Home minister Amit Shah has been given charge of the newly created cooperation ministry. In its scope and political messaging, the reshuffle was arguably the biggest such exercise in several years. It has brought in former CMs Narayan Rane and Sarbananda Sonowal, women leaders such as Meenakshi Lekhi, Shobha Karandlaje, Bharati Pawar and Pratima Bhowmik, politicians with strong grassroot connections and better-known faces like Jyotiraditya Scindia and Rajeev Chandrasekhar.

The portfolio allocations reflected important roles for Dharmendra Pradhan who moved to education, Mansukh Mandaviya who has been given charge of health and chemicals & fertilisers, Kiren Rijiju, the new law minister, and Giriraj Singh, who got the politically significant rural development portfolio. There was also a wild card entry, Ashwini Vaishnaw, who bagged the meaty railways, communication and IT ministries. Virender Kumar, a low-key Dalit leader from MP, is the social justice and empowerment minister replacing Thaawarchand Gehlot.

Just as significant as the inductions and elevations were the exit of senior ministers like IT and law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and I&B minister Prakash Javadekar, who have been public faces of BJP and the government. The exit of health minister Harsh Vardhan, HRD minister Ramesh Pokhriyal and chemicals and fertilisers minister Sadananda Gowda added up to a significant recast.


'''Only 2 current mantris were in Atal ministry'''

Social justice and empowerment minister Thaawarchand Gehlot quit a day earlier and was appointed as Karnataka governor.

The scope of the reshuffle can be judged by the fact that only two of the current ministers — defence minister Rajnath Singh and minister for minority affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi — were in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee ministry. Given the younger age profile of the new ministers, the PM has sought to bring a new set that will have close to three years to gain experience of office before the next Lok Sabha polls. After the reshuffle, there are only two MoS (independent charge) Rao Inderjit and Jitendra Singh. Prahlad Patel, who held independent charge of culture, has lost the perch.

The new nominees reflect an effort to increase the profile of OBCs in the council of ministers, with the number reaching 27 in a ministry of 78. The attempt to reduce the bias towards upper castes is clearly intended to further expand BJP’s appeal among OBCs and make it a more inclusive platform. The emphasis on “backwards” has been complimented by picking nominees who have credentials as doctors, lawyers and community workers.

The chopping has extended to the MoS ranks with Santosh Gangwar, who held independent charge as labour minister, being shown the door. Similarly, ministers of state Babul Supriyo, Dhotre Sanjay Shamrao, Rattan Lal Kataria, Pratap Sarangi and Debasree Chaudhari are out. Lacklustre performance has seen them make way for choices the BJP brass feel will make a mark.

BJP’s electoral needs in UP, where party appears to have made a conscious effort to supplement its Hindutva (Kamandal) plank by bringing in non-Yadav “backwards” (Mandal), Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka and West Bengal appeared to have been a major consideration.

The new ministers represent hard-nosed political calculations such as former CM Narayan Rane who is seen as a pugnacious Maratha leader who can be a counter to Shiv Sena and NCP in his area of influence in Konkan. Former CM Sarbananda Sonowal’s induction reaches out to Assamese sentiments after he made way for Himanta Sarma, who articulates Hindutva issues more sharply.

There are several ministers who reflect the criteria of havingdone a solid work at the state level. Virendra Kumar (MP); Pankaj Chaudhary, S P Baghel, Bhanu Pratap Verma and Kaushal Kishore (UP); Ajay Bhatt (Uttarakhand); Chauhan Devusinh (Gujarat); Bhagwanth Khuba (Karnataka); and Bhagwat Karad (Maharashtra) fit this bill. Ties with Bihar ally, JD(U), have been consolidated with the induction of its chief R C P Singh as steel minister and that of Pashupati Kumar Paras who has the backing of chief minister Nitish Kumar.

UP ally Anupriya Patel, leader of Kurmi outfit Apna Dal, has been brought back.

==A socio-economic profile of the ministers in the  Cabinet==
[[File: A socio-economic profile of the ministers in the Union Cabinet in 2021 July.jpg| A socio-economic profile of the ministers in the Union Cabinet in 2021 July <br/> From: [https://epaper.timesgroup.com/Olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL/2021/07/09&entity=Ar01604&sk=6B33378B&mode=image  July 9, 2021: ''The Times of India'']|frame|500px]]

'''See graphic''':

'' A socio-economic profile of the ministers in the Union Cabinet in 2021 July ''


===Firm on Bengal, BJP picks up 4 minister===
[https://epaper.timesgroup.com/Olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL/2021/07/08&entity=Ar00502&sk=A16EDA39&mode=text  July 8, 2021: ''The Times of India'']


The induction of four firsttime Lok Sabha MPs from West Bengal — Santanu Thakur, John Barla, Nishith Pramanik and Subhash Sarkar — indicates careful selection from regions where BJP either has a good presence, or it can improve on its current strength. Two ministers, including Babul Supriyo, have been dropped.

===New Delhi MP Lekhi made junior EAM===
[https://epaper.timesgroup.com/Olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL/2021/07/08&entity=Ar00502&sk=A16EDA39&mode=text  July 8, 2021: ''The Times of India'']


BJP leader Meenakshi Lekhi, who was elected for a second consecutive term as MP from the New Delhi seat, was inducted into the Union Cabinet on Wednesday while health minister Dr Harsh Vardhan was dropped in the reshuffle. Lekhi has been appointed as junior external affairs and culture minister.

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==Ministers who were dropped==
[https://epaper.timesgroup.com/Olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL/2021/07/08&entity=Ar00501&sk=BF17EE65&mode=text  Akhilesh Singh, July 8, 2021: ''The Times of India'']

The exit of 12 ministers came as a surprise element as well-known faces like health minister Harsh Vardhan, information and broadcasting minister Prakash Javadekar and law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad left the government.

The factors that led to their exit seem to range from slow pace of meeting targets to inadequate communication of policy and political goals in respective ministries. The articulation on the Covid situation was seen to be “bureaucratic” and seemed to lag in countering the opposition allegations during the second wave.


''' Edu minister Pokhriyal learnt to have quit largely over health issue '''

It was also felt that Harsh Vardhan did not take on AAP on issues of oxygen shortages as was needed. Ravi Shankar Prasad, who was holding crucial departments, including law and IT, has been visible and vocal in the government’s showdown with social media giant Twitter. He has also been fielded often as spokesperson on policy and political issues.
The problems in the telecom sector and slow progress in the Bharatnet project are seen as problematic issues. As the party organisation may also be in for recast, the possibility of former ministers finding themselves in new roles can’t be ruled out.
Education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal is learnt to have had to quit largely on health grounds as he was struggling with post-Covid complications. The minister had to be hospitalised again after recovering from the infection. Though having helmed the new education policy, the leader may have been a little slow off the block in dealing with other issues relating to the ministry such as revision of school curriculum that is a major reform for the government. Sadanand Gowda’s exit is linked to multiple reasons including the strife in BJP in Karnataka as also a mediocre performance. A leader like Shobha Karandlaje, a loyalist of B S Yeddyurappa and a Vokkaliga, is a better bet for BJP.

Santosh Gangwar, who was MoS with independent charge, might have lost the job for opening a front against UP CM Yogi Adityanath when the party needed to present a united face during the second wave. He’d written a letter to Yogi alleging mismanagement during the second wave. Leaders belonging to his Kurmi caste have been accommodated, ruling out any possibility of unhappiness in the community.

The exclusions of ministers of state like Babul Supriyo, Sanjay Dhotre Shamrao and Pratap Sarangi is seen as a comment on their inability to make use of opportunities.


===Tripura too gets a slot in Union ministry===
[https://epaper.timesgroup.com/Olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/shared/ShowArticle.aspx?doc=TOIDEL/2021/07/08&entity=Ar00501&sk=BF17EE65&mode=text  Mohua Chatterjee, July 8, 2021: ''The Times of India'']

Tripura Lok Sabha MP Pratima Bhowmik is among the 16 firsttime members of Parliament to take oath as a minister in the Union council of ministers, reports Mohua Chatterjee. Bhowmik’s induction is a clear indication that BJP is preparing to retain the state it won for the first time in 2018, given that CM Biplab Deb is facing some dissent from within. TMC’s victory in Bengal and Mamata Banerjee’s attempt to revive the party’s fortunes in Tripura is seen as threat. Post its Bengal victory, TMC has started campaigning aggressively in Tripura. Bhowmik is the second woman from the northeast to make it to the council of ministers after Bijaya Chakraborty of Assam who was a minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.

=See also= 
[[Union Cabinets/ Council of Ministers, India (historical)]]  

[[Union Cabinet/ Council of Ministers, India (2014-19)]] 

[[Union Cabinet/ Council of Ministers, India (2019-24)]]

[[Union Cabinet/ Council of Ministers, India (2024- )]]

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