The Union Council of Ministers is a constitutional body that exercises executive authority in the Republic of India. It includes senior ministers, called ‘cabinet ministers’, junior ministers, called ‘ministers of state’, and deputy ministers. The Prime Minister is the one who leads the council. It is the supreme executive organ in the government.
The Council of Ministers usually consists of those Ministers who are responsible for a ministry.
It is the decision of the Prime Minister to consult with the council of ministers or not when it comes to making an important decision. The meetings between the council of ministers are not so frequent. The council of ministers consists of about 60 to 70 ministers of the government.
Some of the functions of the Union council of Ministers are as follows:
- Formulation, evaluation, revision, and execution of public policy to progress and practice.
- Executive control over administration and handling of crises and disasters whether natural or political.
- Coordination with different ministries in case of conflicts, duplication of functions, and empire building.
- Financial management and operation of funds like Consolidated Fund and Contingency Funds of India.
- Review the work of the Planning Commission.
What is the Union Cabinet?
The Union Cabinet is a smaller executive body which is the supreme decision-making body in India.
It can be said generally, that a Cabinet is a good place to discuss important business without being interrupted. The cabinet comprises senior ministers who hold important portfolios such as defense, home affairs, education, and many more.
The Prime Minister seeks the advice of the ministers in the union cabinet on important matters as it includes experienced ministers. They together carry out mutual decisions on various matters.
It imposes the collective responsibility of the council to its members. The Cabinet meets very often to formulate policies and to decide on important matters of national note.
Important aspects of the Union Cabinet
Related Articles in the Constitution of India
- Article 74(1) states that there shall be a council of ministers with the Prime Minister at the head to aid and advise the President who shall, in the exercise of his functions, act in accordance with such advice.
As established in the Shamsher Singh v. State of Punjab AIR 1974 SC 2192, the President is bound to act in accordance with the advice given by the Cabinet. - Article 75(3) states that the Council of Ministers is responsible collectively to the lower house of the Indian parliament, called the Lok Sabha (House of the People). When a bill introduced by a minister in the Lok Sabha is not approved by it, the entire council of ministers is responsible and not the minister. The council of ministers upon losing the confidence of Lok Sabha shall resign to facilitate the formation of a new government. This means that the Council of ministers swim and sink together.
- Article 78(c) states that a minister shall not take any decision without being considered by the council of ministers.
- Article 352 states that All union cabinet members shall submit in writing to the President to propose a proclamation of emergency by the President.
Appointment
According to Article 75 of the Indian Constitution a minister works at the pleasure of the President and is appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister.
Termination
- In case of death.
- Upon self resignation
- Dismissal by the President for the minister’s unconstitutional acts per Article 75(2).
- Direction from the Judiciary for committing violation of law.
- Upon ceasing eligibility to be a member of Parliament.
- Under the provision of “Collective Responsibility” under Article 75, the Prime Minister and the entire Council of Ministers resign if a Vote of No Confidence is passed in the Lower House (Lok Sabha) of the Indian Parliament.
Role of the Cabinet
- It is the highest decision making authority in the system.
- It is the main body for policy making in the central government.
- It is also the supreme executive authority.
- It is the main coordinator of the central administration.
- It is an advisory body to the President.
- It is the chief crisis manager and deals with all emergency situations.
- It exercises control over higher appointments like constitutional authorities and senior secretariat administrators.
- It deals with all foreign policies and foreign affairs.
Difference between Council of Ministers and Cabinet Ministers
| Council of Ministers | Cabinet Ministers |
| Has 60 to 70 ministers | Has 15 to 20 ministers |
| It includes cabinet ministers, ministers of states, and deputy ministers | It includes only cabinet ministers |
| It does not meet as a body. It has no collective functions | It meets as a body, usually once a week. It has collective functions. |
| Its powers are in theory. | It exercises, in practice, the powers of the council of ministers |
| Its functions are determined by the cabinet | It directs the council of ministers by taking policy decisions which are binding on all ministers |
| Implements the decisions | It supervises the implementation |
| It is a constitutional body. Its size is determined by the Prime Minister. | It was added in Article 352 of the constitution in 1978 by the 44th Constitutional Amendment Act. |
Important Cabinets of India
1ST CABINET MINISTERS OF INDIA
| PORTFOLIO | MINISTER | TOOK OFFICE | LEFT OFFICE | PARTY | |
| Prime Minister Minister of External Affairs and Commonwealth Relations Minister of Scientific Research | Jawaharlal Nehru | 15 August 1947 | Second Nehru ministry | INC | |
| Deputy Prime Minister | Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel | 15 August 1947 | 15 December 1950 | INC | |
| Minister of Home Affairs and States | Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel | 15 August 1947 | 15 December 1950 | INC | |
| C. Rajagopalachari | 26 December 1950 | 25 October 1951[RES] | INC | ||
| Kailash Nath Katju | 1951 | Second Nehru ministry | INC | ||
| Minister of Information and Broadcasting | Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel | 15 August 1947 | 1949 | INC | |
| R. R. Diwakar | 1949 | 15 April 1952 | INC | ||
| Minister of Finance | R. K. Shanmukham Chetty | 15 August 1947 | 1949 | INC | |
| John Mathai | 1949 | 1950[RES] | INC | ||
| C. D. Deshmukh | 1950 | Second Nehru ministry | INC | ||
| Minister of Law | B. R. Ambedkar | 15 August 1947 | 1951[RES] | SCF | |
| Minister of Defence | Baldev Singh | 15 August 1947 | Second Nehru ministry | Panthic Party | |
| Minister of Railways and Transport | John Mathai | 15 August 1947 | 22 September 1948 | INC | |
| N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar | 22 September 1948 | Second Nehru ministry | INC | ||
| Minister of Education | Maulana Abul Kalam Azad | 15 August 1947 | Second Nehru ministry | INC | |
| Minister of Food and Agriculture | Rajendra Prasad | 15 August 1947 | 15 April 1952 | INC | |
| Minister of Industries and Supplies | Syama Prasad Mukherjee | 15 August 1947 | 6 April 1950[RES] | HM | |
| Harekrushna Mahatab | 13 May 1950 | 26 December 1950[RES] | INC | ||
| Minister of Labour | Jagjivan Ram | 15 August 1947 | 15 April 1952 | INC | |
| Minister of Commerce | Cooverji Hormusji Bhabha | 15 August 1947 | 15 April 1952 | INC | |
| Minister of Communications | Rafi Ahmed Kidwai | 15 August 1947 | 15 April 1952 | INC | |
| Minister of Health | Amrit Kaur | 15 August 1947 | 15 April 1952 | INC | |
| Minister of Works, Mines and Power | Narhar Vishnu Gadgil | 15 August 1947 | 15 April 1952 | INC | |
| Minister of Relief and Rehabilitation | K. C. Neogy | 15 August 1947 | April 1950[RES] | INC | |
| Minister without portfolio | N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar | 15 August 1947 | 22 September 1948 | INC | |
| Mohanlal Saxena | 15 August 1947 | 15 April 1952 | INC |
Highlights of the Cabinet:
- B. R. Ambedkar:
He was the law minister in the cabinet who chaired the Constitution Drafting Committee.
- Vallabhbhai Patel
He served as home minister in the government. He was instrumental in getting the Congress party working committee to vote for partition. He was also credited with integrating peacefully most of the princely states of India.
- Abul Kalam Azad
First Minister of Education in the Indian government Minister of Human Resource Development. He established the education foundation in India.
- Jagjivan Ram
He was the Labour Minister and also a member of the Constituent Assembly of India, as well a member of the dalit caste. He ensured that social justice was shrined in the Constitution.
- Govind Vallabh Pant
He served as Union Home Minister in the cabinet.
Chief achievement: the re-organization of States along linguistic lines. He was also responsible for the establishment of Hindi as an official language of the central government and a few states.
- C. D. Deshmukh
He was one of 5 members of the Planning Commission. Deshmukh’s tenure – during which he delivered six budgets and an interim budget – is noted for the effective management of the Indian economy and its steady growth which saw the economy recover from the impacts of the events of the 1940s.
During Deshmukh’s tenure, the State Bank of India was formed in 1955 through the nationalization and amalgamation of the Imperial Bank with several smaller banks. The nationalization of insurance companies and the formation of the Life Insurance Corporation of India was accomplished by him through the Life Insurance Corporation of India Act, 1956.
Deshmukh resigned over the proposal of the Government of India to move a bill in Parliament bifurcating Bombay State into Gujarat and Maharashtra while designating the city of Bombay a Union Territory.
- Krishna Menon
Vengalil Krishnan Krishna Menon
Under Nehru, he served as India’s high commissioner to the UK, UN ambassador, and union minister of defense. He was forced to resign after the debacle of the 1962 China war.
- Creating the Planning commission of India, Nehru drew up the first Five-Year Plan in 1951, which charted the government’s investments in industries and agriculture.
- He launched programmes to build irrigation canals, dams and spread the use of fertilizers to increase agricultural production.
- Established many institutions of higher learning, including the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, the Indian Institutes of Technology, and the Indian Institutes of Management. He committed to his five-year plans to guarantee free and compulsory primary education to all of India’s children.
- many changes to Hindu law to criminalize caste discrimination and increase the legal rights and social freedoms of women.
- India’s programme to harness nuclear energy was also launched.
- Initiatives such as the provision of free milk and meals to children to fight malnutrition were also taken.
FIRST ATAL BIHARI VAJPAYEE MINISTRY
| Portfolio | Ministers | Took office | Left office | Party |
| Prime Minister | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
| Minister of Home Affairs | Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi[2] | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
| Minister of Finance | Jaswant Singh[3] | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
| Minister of External Affairs Minister of Urban Affairs and Employment | Sikander Bakht | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
| Minister of Agriculture | Suraj Bhan | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
| Minister of Law, Justice and Company Affairs | Ram Jethmalani | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
| Minister of Civil Aviation and Tourism | V. Dhananjaya Kumar | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
| Minister of Defence Minister of Parliamentary Affairs | Pramod Mahajan | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
| Minister of Welfare | Karia Munda | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
| Minister of Industry | Suresh Prabhu | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | SHS |
| Minister of Health and Family Welfare | Sartaj Singh | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
| Minister of Information and Broadcasting | Sushma Swaraj | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | BJP |
SECOND ATAL BIHARI VAJPAYEE MINISTRY
THIRD ATAL BIHARI VAJPAYEE MINISTRY
| Portfolio | Ministers | Took office | Left office | Party |
| Prime Minister | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | 13 October 1999 | 22 May 2004 | BJP |
| Deputy Prime Minister | L. K. Advani | 29 June 2002 | 22 May 2004 | BJP |
| Minister of External Affairs | Jaswant Singh | 13 October 1999 | 1 July 2002 | BJP |
| Yashwant Sinha | 1 July 2002 | 22 May 2004 | BJP | |
| Minister of Finance | Yashwant Sinha | 13 October 1999 | 1 July 2002 | BJP |
| Jaswant Singh | 1 July 2002 | 22 May 2004 | BJP | |
| Minister of Home Affairs | L. K. Advani | 13 October 1999 | 22 May 2004 | BJP |
| Minister of Defence | George Fernandes | 13 October 1999 | 16 March 2001 | SAP |
| Jaswant Singh | 16 March 2001 | 21 October 2001 | BJP | |
| George Fernandes | 21 October 2001 | 22 May 2004 | JD(U) | |
| Minister of Railways | Mamata Banerjee | 13 October 1999 | 16 March 2001 | AITC |
| Nitish Kumar | 20 March 2001 | 22 May 2004 | SAP | |
| Minister of Science and Technology | Murali Manohar Joshi | 13 October 1999 | 21 May 2004 | BJP |
| Minister of Labour | Satyanarain Jatia | 22 November 1999 | 1 September 2001 | BJP |
| Sharad Yadav | 1 September 2001 | 30 June 2002 | JD(U) | |
| Minister of Health and Family Welfare | Sushma Swaraj | 30 September 2000 | April 2004 | BJP |
| Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas | Ram Naik | 13 October 1999 | 22 May 2004 | BJP |
| Minister of Textiles | Kashiram Rana | 1999 | 25 May 2003 | BJP |
| Syed Shahnawaz Hussain | 25 May 2003 | 2004 | BJP | |
| Minister of Rural Development | Sunder Lal Patwa | 13 October 1999 | 30 September 2000 | BJP |
| Venkaiah Naidu | 30 September 2000 | 30 June 2002 | BJP | |
| Kashiram Rana | 25 May 2003 | 22 May 2004 | BJP | |
| Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers | Suresh Prabhu | 13 October 1999 | 30 September 2000 | SHS |
| Sunder Lal Patwa | 30 September 2000 | 7 November 2000 | BJP | |
| Minister of Mines | Naveen Patnaik | 13 October 1999 | 8 March 2000 | BJD |
| Sunder Lal Patwa | 7 November 2000 | 1 September 2001 | BJP | |
| Ram Vilas Paswan | 1 September 2001 | 29 April 2002 | LJP | |
| Uma Bharti | 26 August 2002 | 29 January 2003 | BJP | |
| Ramesh Bais | 29 January 2003 | 8 January 2004 | BJP | |
| Mamata Banerjee | 9 January 2004 | May 2004 | AITC | |
| Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution | Shanta Kumar | 13 October 1999 | 30 June 2002 | BJP |
| Sharad Yadav | 1 July 2002 | 15 May 2004 | JD(U) | |
| Minister of Commerce and Industry | Murasoli Maran | 1999 | 2002 | DMK |
| Minister of Environment and Forests | T. R. Baalu | 13 October 1999 | 21 December 2003 | DMK |
| Ramesh Bais | 9 January 2004 | 23 May 2004 | BJP | |
| Minister of Communications | Ram Vilas Paswan | 1999 | 1 September 2001 | LJP |
| Pramod Mahajan | 1 September 2001 | 29 January 2003 | BJP | |
| Minister of Civil Aviation | Sharad Yadav | 13 October 1999 | 31 August 2001 | JD(U) |
| Syed Shahnawaz Hussain | 1 September 2001 | 23 May 2003 | BJP | |
| Minister without portfolio | Mamata Banerjee | 15 March 2001 | 8 January 2004 | AITC |
| Minister of Law and Justice | Ram Jethmalani | 13 October 1999 | 23 July 2000 | BJP |
| Arun Jaitley | 23 July 2000 | July 2002 | BJP | |
| Jana Krishnamurthy | July 2002 | January 2003 | BJP | |
| Arun Jaitley | 29 January 2003 | 21 May 2004 | BJP | |
| Minister of Parliamentary Affairs | Pramod Mahajan | 13 October 1999 | 29 January 2003 | BJP |
| Sushma Swaraj | 30 September 2000 | 29 January 2003 | BJP | |
| Minister of Tribal Affairs | Jual Oram | 13 October 1999 | 22 May 2004 | BJP |
| Minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises | Manohar Joshi | 13 October 1999 | 9 May 2002 | SHS |
| Minister of Power | P R Kumaramangalam | 13 October 1999 | 23 August 2000 | BJP |
| Suresh Prabhu | 30 September 2000 | 24 August 2002 | SHS | |
| Anant Geete | 26 August 2002 | 21 May 2004 | SHS |
Highlights of the Cabinet:
- Raising India’s GDP
He introduced economic reforms. Under his tenure from 1998 to 2004, India maintained a GDP rate of eight percent, the inflation level came down to four percent and foreign exchange reserves were flourishing. - Introduction to Fiscal Responsibility Act
He introduced the Fiscal Responsibility Act which aimed to reduce the fiscal deficit and boost public-sector savings. - Privatisation
Privatisation was also appreciated for giving rise to private business in India, it reduced the government’s involvement in the industry. Further, a separate disinvestment ministry was formed. The most important disinvestments were Bharat Aluminium Company (BALCO) and Hindustan Zinc, Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited and VSNL. - The rise of the Indian telecom industry
A revenue-sharing model was introduced under New Telecom Policy which helped telecom firms to get away with fixed license fees. - Education policy
In India, elementary education became free for children aged 6-14 years. - Science and Research
The Chandrayan-1 project was passed. - Infrastructure
The most ambitious road projects in India were launched, including the Golden Quadrilateral and the Pradhanmantri Gramin Sadak Yojna. The Golden Quadrilateral made transportation easy, connecting metropolitan cities — Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi, and Mumbai — through a network of highways. Pradhanmantri Gramin Sadak Yojna connected distant villages across the country with a network of all-weather roads. - Lahore summit
He initiated a new peace process aimed towards permanently resolving the Kashmir dispute and other conflicts with Pakistan. - AIADMK’s withdrawal from the coalition
The AIADMK had continually threatened to withdraw from the coalition and national leaders repeatedly flew down from Delhi to Chennai to pacify the AIADMK general secretary J. Jayalalithaa.
FIRST INDIRA GANDHI MINISTRY
| Portfolio | Ministers | Took office | Left office | Party |
| Prime Minister and Minister of Atomic Energy | Indira Gandhi | 24 January 1966 | 15 March 1971 | INC (R) |
| Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance | Morarji Desai | 21 March 1967 | 6 December 1969 | INC |
| Minister of Finance | Sachindra Chaudhuri | 24 January 1966 | 13 March 1967 | INC |
| Morarji Desai | 13 March 1967 | 16 July 1969 | INC | |
| Indira Gandhi | 1969 | 1971 | INC (R) | |
| Minister of Home Affairs | Gulzarilal Nanda | 24 January 1966 | 14 November 1966 | INC |
| Yashwantrao Chavan | 14 November 1966 | 27 June 1970 | INC (R) | |
| Indira Gandhi | 27 June 1970 | II. I. Gandhi | INC (R) | |
| Minister of External Affairs | Sardar Swaran Singh | 24 January 1966 | 14 November 1966 | INC |
| M. C. Chagla | 14 November 1966 | 5 September 1967 | INC | |
| Indira Gandhi | 6 September 1967 | 13 February 1969 | INC (R) | |
| Dinesh Singh | 13 February 1969 | 27 June 1970 | INC (R) | |
| Sardar Swaran Singh | 27 June 1970 | II I. Gandhi | INC (R) | |
| Minister of Defence | Yashwantrao Chavan | 24 January 1966 | 1966 | INC |
| Sardar Swaran Singh | 13 March 1967 | 1970 | INC (R) | |
| Minister of Transport, Aviation and Shipping and Minister of Tourism (Tourism and Civil Aviation from 1967) | Neelam Sanjiva Reddy | 24 January 1966 | 13 March 1967 | INC |
| Karan Singh | 13 March 1967 | 1969 | INC | |
| Minister of Transport and Shipping | V. K. R. V. Rao | 13 March 1967 | 1969 | INC |
| Minister of Labour and Employment (Rehabilitation from 18 February 1966) | Jagjivan Ram | 24 January 1966 | 13 March 1967 | INC |
| Jaisukh lal Hathi | 13 March 1967 | 1969 | INC | |
| Minister of Railways | S. K. Patil | 24 January 1966 | 12 March 1967 | INC |
| C. M. Poonacha | 13 March 1967 | 14 February 1969 | INC (R) | |
| Ram Subhag Singh | 14 February 1969 | 4 November 1969 | INC (R) | |
| Panampilly Govinda Menon | 4 November 1969 | 18 February 1970 | INC (R) | |
| Gulzarilal Nanda | 18 February 1970 | 17 March 1971 | INC (R) | |
| Minister of Information and Broadcasting | Kodardas Kalidas Shah | 13 March 1967 | 14 February 1969 | INC |
| Ram Subhag Singh | 14 February 1969 | 1971 | INC (R) | |
| Minister of Agriculture (and Food from 1967) | Chidambaram Subramaniam | 24 January 1966 | 13 March 1967 | INC |
| Jagjivan Ram | 13 March 1967 | 1967 | INC | |
| M. S. Gurupadaswamy | 1967 | 1969 | INC (R) | |
| Minister of Parliamentary Affairs | Satya Narayan Sinha | 24 January 1966 | 13 March 1967 | INC |
| Ram Subhag Singh | 13 March 1967 | 14 February 1969 | INC (R) | |
| Minister of Education | M. C. Chagla | 24 January 1966 | 13 November 1966 | INC |
| Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed | 14 November 1966 | 13 March 1967 | INC (R) | |
| Triguna Sen | 16 March 1967 | 18 March 1971 | INC (R) | |
| Minister of Industry | Damodaram Sanjivayya | 24 January 1966 | 13 March 1967 | INC |
| Minister of Commerce | Manubhai Shah | 24 January 1966 | 1967 | INC |
| Dinesh Singh | 13 March 1967 | 1969 | INC | |
| Minister of Planning (and Petroleum and Chemicals and Social Welfare from 1967) | Asoka Mehta | 24 January 1966 | 1969 | INC |
| Minister of Law | Gopal Swarup Pathak | 24 January 1966 | 13 March 1967 | INC |
| Panampilly Govinda Menon | 13 March 1967 | 1969 | INC | |
| Minister of Irrigation and Power | Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed | 29 January 1966 | 14 November 1966 | INC |
| Minister of Industrial Development and Company Affairs | Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed | 13 March 1967 | 1969 | INC (R) |
| Minister of Steel, Mines and Metals | Marri Chenna Reddy | 13 March 1967 | 1969 | INC |
| Minister without Portfolio | Satya Narayan Sinha | 13 March 1967 | 1969 | INC |
SECOND INDIRA GANDHI MINISTRY
Highlights of the Cabinet:
- Green Revolution and the Fourth Five-Year Plan
Gandhi inherited steps to liberalise the economy and agreed to the devaluation of the currency in return for the restoration of foreign aid. To deal with India’s food problems, the emphasis on the production of inputs to agriculture expanded. The Green Revolution in India culminated which transformed the country from a nation heavily reliant on imported grains, and prone to famine, to one largely able to feed itself, and becoming successful in achieving its goal of food security. - State of Emergency and the Fifth Five-Year Plan
The Fifth Five-Year Plan (1974–79) was passed against the backdrop of the state of emergency and the Twenty Point Program of 1975. The measures of the emergency regime were able to halt the economic trouble of the early to mid-1970s, which had been marred by harvest failures, fiscal contraction, and the breakdown of the Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates. - Operation Forward and the Sixth Five-Year Plan
Gandhi proceeded to abrogate the Janata Party government’s Five-Year Plan in 1980 and launched the Sixth Five-Year Plan (1980–85). Popular programmes and policies were replaced by pragmatism. There was an emphasis on tightening public expenditures, greater efficiency of the state-owned enterprises (SOE).
Operation Forward was launched in 1982, the first cautious attempt at reform. - Inflation
Gandhi inherited a tattered economy in her second term; harvest failures and a second oil shock in the late 1970s had caused inflation to rise again.
- Nationalization
In 1969, fourteen major commercial banks were nationalised. The coal, steel, copper, refining, cotton textiles, and insurance industries were nationalised. - Social reform
The principle of equal pay for equal work for both men and women was. - Language policy
Under the 1950 Constitution of India, Hindi was to have become the official national language by 1965. This was not accepted by many non-Hindi speaking states, which wanted the continued use of English in government. In 1967, a constitutional amendment was introduced that guaranteed the use of both Hindi and English as official languages. - India’s nuclear programme
The development of nuclear weapons in 1967 was allowed, in response to Test No. 6 by the People’s Republic of China.
Verbal authorization for this test and preparations were made in the Indian Army’s Pokhran Test Range.
RAJIB GANDHI MINISTRY
| Portfolio | Ministers | Took office | Left office | Party |
| Prime Minister | Rajiv Gandhi | 31 October 1984 | 2 December 1989 | INC |
| Minister of Law and Justice | Ashoke Kumar Sen | 31 December 1984 | 24 January1987 | INC |
| P. Shiv Shankar | 24 January 1987 | 14 February 1988 | INC | |
| Bindeshwari Dubey | 14 February 1988 | 26 June 1988 | INC | |
| B. Shankaranand | 26 June 1988 | 2 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Home Affairs | Shankarrao Chavan | 31 December 1984 | 12 March 1986 | INC |
| Arun Nehru | September 1985 | October 1986 | INC | |
| P. V. Narasimha Rao | 12 March 1986 | 12 May 1986 | INC | |
| Buta Singh | 12 May 1986 | 2 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of External Affairs | Rajiv Gandhi | 31 October 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| Bali Ram Bhagat | 25 September 1985 | 12 May 1986 | INC | |
| P. Shiv Shankar | 12 May 1986 | 22 October 1987 | INC | |
| N.D. Tiwari | 22 October 1987 | 25 July 1987 | INC | |
| Rajiv Gandhi | 25 July 1987 | 25 June 1988 | INC | |
| P. V. Narasimha Rao | 25 June 1988 | 2 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Railways | Bansi Lal | 31 December 1984 | 4 June 1986 | INC |
| Mohsina Kidwai | 24 June 1986 | 21 October 1986 | INC | |
| Madhavrao Scindia | 22 October 1986 | 1 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Defence | P. V. Narasimha Rao | 1984 | 1985 | INC |
| Rajiv Gandhi | 1985 | 1987 | INC | |
| V. P. Singh | 1987 | 1987 | INC | |
| K. C. Pant | 1987 | 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Information and Broadcasting | H. K. L. Bhagat | Third Indira Gandhi ministry | December 1984 | INC |
| V. N. Gadgil | January 1985 | October 1986 | INC | |
| Ajit Kumar Panja | 1986 | 1988 | INC | |
| H. K. L. Bhagat | February 1988 | 2 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development | Buta Singh | 1984 | 12 May 1986 | INC |
| Gurdial Singh Dhillon | 12 May 1986[8] | 14 February 1988 | INC | |
| Bhajan Lal | 14 February 1988 | 2 Dec 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Tourism | Rajiv Gandhi | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| H. K. L. Bhagat | 25 September 1985 | 12 May 1986 | INC | |
| Mufti Mohammad Sayeed | 12 May 1986 | 14 July 1987 | INC | |
| Mohsina Kidwai | 14 February 1988 | 25 June 1988 | INC | |
| Minister of Parliamentary Affairs | Buta Singh | 31 October 1984 | 31 December 1984 | INC |
| H. K. L. Bhagat | 31 December 1984 | 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Health and Family Welfare | Mohsina Kidwai | 31 December 1984 | 24 June 1986 | INC |
| P. V. Narasimha Rao | 24 June 1986 | 14 February 1988 | INC | |
| Motilal Vora | 14 February 1988 | 25 January 1989 | INC | |
| Ram Niwas Mirdha | 25 January 1989 | 1 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Finance | V. P. Singh | 31 December 1984 | 24 January 1987 | INC |
| Rajiv Gandhi | 24 January 1987 | 25 July 1987 | INC | |
| N. D. Tiwari | 25 July 1987 | 25 June 1988 | INC | |
| Shankarrao Chavan | 25 June 1988 | 2 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Labour and Employment | Bindeshwari Dubey | 26 June 1988 | 2 December 1989 | INC |
| Minister of Works and housing | Abdul Gafoor | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| Minister of Irrigation | B. Shankaranand | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| Minister of Power | B. Shankaranand | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| Vasant Sathe | 25 September 1985 | 1 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Environment and Forest | Rajiv Gandhi | 31 December 1984 | 22 October 1986 | INC |
| Bhajan Lal | 22 October 1986 | 14 February 1988 | INC | |
| Z. R. Ansari | 25 June 1988 | 1 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Water Resources | B. Shankaranand | 25 September 1985 | 21 August 1987 | INC |
| Rajiv Gandhi | 21 August 1987 | 14 February 1988 | INC | |
| Dinesh Singh | 14 February 1988 | 25 June 1988 | INC | |
| B. Shankaranand | 25 June 1988 | 2 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Human Resource Development | K. C. Pant | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| P. V. Narasimha Rao | 25 September 1985 | 25 June 1988 | INC | |
| P. Shiv Shankar | 25 June 1988 | 1 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Planning | P. V. Narasimha Rao | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| Rajiv Gandhi | 25 September 1985 | 14 February 1988 | INC | |
| P. Shiv Shankar | 14 February 1988 | 25 June 1988 | INC | |
| Madhav Singh Solanki | 25 June 1988 | 1 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Food and Civil Supplies | Rao Birendra Singh | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| H. K. L. Bhagat | 12 May 1986 | 14 February 1988 | INC | |
| Minister of Steel & Mines | Vasant Sathe | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| K. C. Pant | 25 September 1985 | 12 April 1987 | INC | |
| Vasant Sathe | 12 April 1987 | 25 July 1987 | INC | |
| Makhan Lal Fotedar | 25 July 1987 | 1 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Coal | Vasant Sathe | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers | Veerendra Patil | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| Minister of Industry | Veerendra Patil | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| Narayan Dutt Tiwari | 25 September 1985 | 22 October 1986 | INC | |
| Jalagam Vengala Rao | 22 October 1986 | 2 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Commerce | Rajiv Gandhi | 31 December 1984 | 14 January 1985 | INC |
| V. P. Singh | 14 January 1985 | 25 September 1985 | INC | |
| Arjun Singh | 15 November 1985 | 19 January 1986 | INC | |
| P. Shiv Shankar | 20 January 1986 | 25 July 1987 | INC | |
| Narayan Dutt Tiwari | 25 July 1987 | 25 June 1988 | INC | |
| Dinesh Singh | 25 June 1988 | 1 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Urban Development | Abdul Gafoor | 25 September 1985 | 22 October 1986 | INC |
| Mohsina Kidwai | 22 October 1986 | 1 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Civil Aviation | Rajiv Gandhi | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | INC |
| Bansi Lal | 25 September 1985 | 24 June 1986 | INC | |
| Motilal Vora | 14 February 1988 | 25 June 1988 | INC | |
| Minister of Transport | Bansi Lal | 25 September 1985 | 24 June 1986 | INC |
| Mohsina Kidwai | 24 June 1986 | 22 October 1986 | INC | |
| Minister of Programme Implementation | A. B. A. Ghani Khan Choudhury | 25 September 1985 | 4 May 1987 | INC |
| P. Shiv Shankar | 25 July 1987 | 25 June 1988 | INC | |
| Madhav Singh Solanki | 25 June 1988 | 1 December 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Communications | Arjun Singh | 22 October 1986 | 14 February 1988 | INC |
| Vasant Sathe | 14 February 1988 | 25 June 1988 | INC | |
| Vir Bahadur Singh | 25 June 1988 | 30 May 1989 | INC | |
| Minister of Information and Broadcasting | H. K. L. Bhagat | 14 February 1988 | 1 December 1989 | INC |
| Minister of Textiles | Ram Niwas Mirdha | 14 February 1988 | 1 December 1989 | INC |
Highlights of the Cabinet:
- Anti-defection law
The anti-defection law was passed in January 1985. According to this law, an elected Member of Parliament or legislative assembly could not join an opposition party until the next election. - Shah Bano case
In 1985, the Supreme Court of India ruled in favour of Muslim divorcee Shah Bano, declaring that her husband should give her alimony. Some Indian Muslims treated it as an invasion of Muslim Personal Law and protested against it. Gandhi agreed to their demands. - Economic policy
He tried to liberalise the country’s economy by providing incentives to make private production profitable. He increased government support for science, technology, and associated industries, and reduced import quotas, taxes and tariffs on technology-based industries, especially computers, airlines, defence, and telecommunications. Measures were introduced to significantly reduce the Licence Raj after 1990. - Telecom Revolution
In 1986, MTNL (Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited) was established which helped in the spread of the telephone network. Six technology missions related to telecommunications, water, literacy, immunisation, dairy, and oilseeds were established. - Voting Age
The 61st Amendment Act of the Constitution was passed in 1989, lowering the voting age from 21 years to 18 years. This move allowed the youths to have a right in choosing Lok Sabha MPs and MLAs in the states. - Education
The National Policy on Education (NPE) in 1986 was announced to modernise and expand higher education programmes across the country. The Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya System was introduced by him, which is a Central government-based education institution that provides rural populations with free residential education from grades six to twelve.
FIRST MANMOHAN SINGH MINISTRY
SECOND MANMOHAN SINGH MINISTRY
Highlights of the Cabinet:
- Helping GDP grow:
Manmohan Singh, along with the former Finance Minister, P. ChidambaramIndia achieved its highest GDP growth rate of 9% and became the second fastest – growing major economy in the world in 2007. The Finance ministry worked towards relieving farmers of their debt. In 2005, the VAT tax was introduced that replaced the sales tax. - Special Economic Zones (SEZ) Act 2005:
The Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Act 2005 received the approval of the President of India on 23rd June 2005. The act was enacted to provide a legal framework for establishing Special Economic Zones and their units, to generate additional economic activity by promoting goods and services and generating foreign and domestic investments, and to provide ‘backward and forward’ linkages of the economy by satisfying the requirements of all the stakeholders in an SEZ. - National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGA) Act 2005:
The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) in 2005 was introduced, which is a social security scheme that aims at providing livelihood, employment to rural communities and laborers in India. It also ensures income security to rural families by providing a minimum of 100 days of definite wage employment in one year. - GDP clocked at 10.08%
Under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s government, India clocked at a 10.08% growth rate in 2006-2007. - Indo-US Nuclear Deal
Biggest achievement: the signing of the Indo-US Nuclear Deal of the India Civil Nuclear Agreement on 18th July 2005. Under the agreement, India agreed to separate its civil and military nuclear facilities and that all civilian nuclear facilities would be placed under the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). - Healthcare and education
In 2005, Manmohan Singh and his government’s health ministry started the National Rural Health Mission (NHRM), which mobilized half a million community health workers.
In 2006, the proposal was implemented to reserve 27% of seats in All India Institute of Medical Studies (AIIMS), Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), and other central institutions of higher education for Other Backward Classes which led to 2006 Indian anti-reservation protests.
On 2 July 2009, The Right to Education Act (RTE) was introduced. Eight IIT’s were opened in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Orissa, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Himachal Pradesh.
The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan program also continued. The programme includes the introduction and improvement of mid-day meals and the opening of schools all over India, especially in rural areas, to fight illiteracy. - Security and Home Affairs
Anti-terror laws were strengthened with amendments to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Unique Identification Authority of India was established in February 2009, an agency responsible for implementing the envisioned Multipurpose National Identity Card to increase national security and facilitate e-governance. Initiation of a massive reconstruction effort in Kashmir to stabilize the region. - Legislations
New cash benefits were introduced for widows, pregnant women, and landless persons.
The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 was passed on 29 August 2013 in the Lok Sabha and on September 2013.
Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act was enacted which describes the modalities of the importance of free and compulsory education for children between 6 and 14 in India under Article 21A of the Indian Constitution.
CABINET MINISTERS OF INDIA 2021
Cabinet Minister of India 2020 and their Constituency
| S.NO. | NAME | MINISTRY | CONSTITUENCY |
| 1. | Shri Narendra Modi | Prime Minister1. Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances, and Pensions2. Department of Space3. Department of Atomic Energy4. All important policy issues and all other portfolios not allocated to any Minister | Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh |
| Cabinet Ministers | |||
| 2. | Shri Amit Shah | Ministry of Home Affairs | Gandhinagar (Gujarat) |
| 3. | Shri Raj Nath Singh | Ministry of Defence | Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) |
| 4. | Shri Nitin Jairam Gadkari | 1. Ministry of Road Transport and Highways2. Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises | Nagpur (Maharashtra) |
| 5. | Shri D.V. Sadananda Gowda | Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers | Bangalore North (Karnataka) |
| 6. | Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman | 1. Ministry of Finance2. Ministry of Corporate Affairs | Andhra Pradesh |
| 7. | Shri Narendra Singh Tomar | 1. Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare2. Ministry of Rural Development3. Ministry of Panchayati Raj4. Ministry of Food Processing Industries | Morena (Madhya Pradesh) |
| 8. | Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad | 1. Ministry of Law and Justice2. Ministry of Communications3. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology | Patna Sahib (Bihar) |
| 9. | Shri Thaawar Chand Gehlot | Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment | Shajapur – SC (Madhya Pradesh) |
| 10. | Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar | Ministry of External Affairs | Gujarat |
| 11. | Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ | Ministry of Education | Hardwar (Uttarakhand) |
| 12. | Shri Arjun Munda | Ministry of Tribal Affairs | Khunti (ST) (Jharkhand) |
| 13. | Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani | 1. Ministry of Women and Child Development2. Ministry of Textiles | Amethi (Uttar Pradesh) |
| 14. | Dr. Harsh Vardhan | 1. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare2. Ministry of Science and Technology3. Ministry of Earth Sciences | Chandni Chowk (NCT of Delhi) |
| 15. | Shri Prakash Javadekar | 1. Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change2. Ministry of Information and Broadcasting3. Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises | Rajya Sabha (Maharastra) |
| 16. | Shri Piyush Goyal | 1. Ministry of Railways2. Ministry of Commerce and Industry3. Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution | Rajya Sabha (Maharastra) |
| 17. | Shri Dharmendra Pradhan | 1. Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas2. Ministry of Steel | Rajya Sabha (Madhya Pradesh) |
| 18. | Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi | Ministry of Minority Affairs | Rajya Sabha (Jharkhand) |
| 19. | Shri Pralhad Joshi | 1. Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs2. Ministry of Coal3. Ministry of Mines | Dharwad (Karnataka) |
| 20. | Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey | Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship | Chandauli (Uttar Pradesh) |
| 21. | Shri Giriraj Singh | Ministry of Animal Husbandry, Dairying, and Fisheries | Begusarai (Bihar) |
| 22. | Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat | Ministry of Jal Shakti | Jodhpur (Rajasthan) |
Highlights of the Cabinet:
- GOODS AND SERVICES TAX
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) was in the line for 17 years before it became a major tax reform in 2017.
The rollout of GST through a special session of Parliament remains a major highlight of the Modi government. - INSOLVENCY AND BANKRUPTCY CODE
The link between businesses failure and the banking ailment was seen as a problem area for economic growth and policy – making for a long. The Modi government enacted on the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) law in 2016. - SWACHH BHARAT
The Swachh Bharat campaign is one of the big achievements of the Modi government. The toilet-construction programme under the Swachh Bharat campaign to make India an open-defecation free (ODF) country. - CLEANER, HEALTHIER KITCHEN
Free distribution of the LPG cylinders. It was done through the Ujjwala Yojana, under which women in villages get free one LPG cylinder connection per household. - POLITICAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS
The Modi government fulfilled some long-standing demands of the BJP – revoking the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370, construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya — PM Modi led the groundbreaking ceremony following a Supreme Court ruling, abolition of triple talaq — a step seen largely forwarding the goal of bringing in a uniform civil code. - COVID-19
The death toll has been rising with India recording the maximum daily deaths in the world due to Covid-19. This is the immediate biggest challenge for PM Modi and his government. - JOBS
The government allegedly held back a survey that put the unemployment rate at a 42-year-high month ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha election. - PM Narendra Modi listed out the big decisions taken by the government in the last eight months.
- All farmers covered under the PM Kisan Yojana
- Ensuring pension to farmers, laborers, shopkeepers
- Ministry of Jal Shakti constituted to end silos on an important subject like water
- A special fund of Rs. 25,000 crore for completing housing projects for the middle class
- Regularising unauthorized colonies which benefit 40 lakh people of Delhi
- Law related to triple talaq
- Law for strict punishment against child abuse
- Law empowering transgender persons
- Chit fund scheme fraud prevention law
- National Medical Commission Act
- Historical reduction in corporate tax
- Strict law to prevent road accidents
- Appointment of Chief of Defence Staff
- Delivery of next generation fighter plane to the country
- Bodo Peace Accord
- Brue-Reang Permanent Settlement
- Formation of Trust for a grand Ram Temple
- The decision to revoke article-370
- The decision to make Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh Union Territories
- Citizenship Amendment Act
Women in the Indian Cabinet
First Woman Cabinet Minister in Independent India
Jawaharlal Nehru’s first cabinet had only one woman minister – Rajkumari Amrit Kaur who was given the charge of Health Ministry. She played an instrumental role in ideating and building the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi.
Women Representation in Indian Cabinet since Independence
Despite the fact that the first cabinet of the Republic of India inducted one woman minister, the successive years did not see any representation of women. Lal Bahadur Shastri’s lean cabinet of 10 ministries had no place for women. The 5th, 6th and 9th cabinet of India under Indira Gandhi’s rule did not see any woman union minister. However, the 6th and 9th cabinet included eminent women such as Dr Sarojini Mahishi, Nandini Satpathy, Sushila Rohatgi and Saroj Khaparde as ministers of state. In fact, Rajiv Gandhi’s cabinet could accommodate only one woman minister – Mohsina Kidwai.
That was probably the beginning of the end of under-representation of women in Indian cabinet. Maneka Gandhi was made the Minister of State for Environment & Forests during VP Singh’s regime. But all these years, the percentage of women participation in the cabinet hovered between 0-7 per cent.
The 13th Indian cabinet under PV Narasimha Rao had only Mamata Banerjee as Minister of State for HRD, Youth Affairs and Sports, and Women and Child Development. After a long hiatus, Indian cabinet accommodated a woman union minister, when Sushma Swaraj was appointed as the Minister of Information and Broadcasting in the first Vajpayee ministry. Names such as Vasundhara Raje and Uma Bharti were seen in the list of ministers of state in the 17th and 18th cabinet. For the first time since independence, the cabinet (2004 to May 2009) inducted more than one woman union minister as Meira Kumar, Ambika Soni and Panabaka Lakshmi came into the picture, taking the percentage of women’s representation to 10 per cent.
Women Ministers in the Modi Cabinet
This time, women have indeed fared better when it comes to their representation in the cabinet. The NDA government walked the talk on women empowerment and nothing could be more evident than the fact that six out of a team of 23 ministers of the new cabinet headed by Narendra Modi are women.
It is to be noted that women cabinet ministers were given some of the most challenging portfolios. To begin with, Sushma Swaraj was given the charge of the external affairs ministry, which had always been a male bastion. It naturally places her in the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), which is considered as the top decision-making body on national security.
Other crucial ministries on Women and Child Development, Human Resource Development and Minority Affairs are now being taken care of by Maneka Gandhi, Smriti Irani and Najma Heptulla, respectively. With over 25 percent of women leaders becoming a part of the country’s most important decision-making body, it could be a sign of the reversal of past trends.
Here are brief introductions of each and every one of them:
Amrit Kaur (1952-1957)
She became part of Jawaharlal Nehru’s first Cabinet; she was the first woman to hold Cabinet rank, serving for ten years. She was assigned the Ministry of Health. In 1950, she was elected the president of World Health Assembly. As Health Minister, Kaur led a major campaign to fight the spread of malaria in India. She also led the campaign to eradicate tuberculosis and was the driving force behind the largest B.C.G vaccination programme in the world.
As the health minister, Kaur played an instrumental role in establishment of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi, and became its first president. Kaur was also instrumental in founding the Indian Council of Child Welfare.
Under her aegis, the Indian Red Cross contributed towards improving healthcare quality in the hinterlands of the country. She was the one credited with the initiative of launching Tuberculosis Association of India and the Central Leprosy Teaching and Research Institute, Chennai.
Indira Gandhi
She was an Indian politician and a central figure of the Indian National Congress.She was the first and, to date, only female Prime Minister of India
| 3rd Prime Minister of India |
| In office 14 January 1980 – 31 October 1984 |
| Minister of External Affairs |
| In office 9 March 1984 – 31 October 1984 |
| In office 22 August 1967 – 14 March 1969 |
| Minister of Defence |
| In office 14 January 1980 – 15 January 1982 |
| In office 30 November 1975 – 20 December 1975 |
| Minister of Home Affairs |
| In office 27 June 1970 – 4 February 1973 |
| Minister of Finance |
| In office 17 July 1969 – 27 June 1970 |
| Minister of Information and Broadcasting |
| In office 9 June 1964 – 24 January 196 |
In 1971, she threw her support behind the Bengali movement to separate East from West Pakistan, providing refuge for the ten million Pakistani civilians who fled to India in order to escape the marauding Pakistan army and eventually offering troops and arms. India’s decisive victory over Pakistan in December led to the creation of Bangladesh, for which Gandhi was posthumously awarded Bangladesh’s highest state honor 40 years later
Sushma swaraj (1996-2004)
She is a senior leader of Bharatiya Janata Party, Swaraj served as the Minister of External Affairs of India in the first Narendra Modi government (2014–2019). She was the second woman to hold the office, after Indira Gandhi.
| 29th Minister of External Affairs |
| In office 26 May 2014 – 30 May 2019 |
| Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha |
| In office 21 December 2009 – 26 May 2014 |
| Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs |
| In office 26 May 2014 – 7 January 2016 |
| Minister of Parliamentary Affairs |
| In office 29 January 2003 – 22 May 2004 |
| Minister of Health and Family Welfare |
| In office 29 January 2003 – 22 May 2004 |
| Minister of Information and Broadcasting |
| In office 1996 – 2004 |
She served as Union Cabinet Minister for Information and Broadcasting during the 13-day government of PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1996.
she was sworn in as Union Cabinet Minister for Information and Broadcasting with an additional charge of the Ministry of Telecommunications from 19 March 1998 to 12 October 1998.[21] Her most notable decision during this period was to declare film production as an industry, which made the Indian film industry eligible for bank finance. She also started community radio at universities and other institutions.
She was Minister of Health, Family Welfare and Parliamentary Affairs from January 2003 until May 2004, when the National Democratic Alliance Government lost the general election.[21]
As Union Health Minister, she set up six All India Institute of Medical Sciences at Bhopal (MP), Bhubaneshwar (Odisha), Jodhpur (Rajasthan), Patna (Bihar), Raipur (Chhattisgarh) and Rishikesh (Uttrakhand).
Swaraj had served as the Indian Minister of External Affairs under Prime Minister Narendra Modi from May 2014 to May 2019. She was responsible for implementing the foreign policy of Narendra Modi. She was only the second woman to hold this position after Indira Gandhi.[31][32]
While being the Minister of External Affairs of the NDA government, Swaraj issued an NOC against a specific query raised by the UK government about the Indo-UK bilateral relationship if the UK granted permission to Lalit Modi, an Indian fugitive in a cricket scandal who had been staying in Britain since 2010, to attend his wife’s surgery in Portugal. She conveyed to the British High Commissioner that they should examine Modi’s request as per their rules and wrote “if the British government chooses to give travel documents to Lalit Modi -– that will not spoil our bilateral relations”
As External Affairs Minister, she played a pivotal role in bringing back the then 23-year-old hearing and speech-impaired Indian girl named Gita who was stranded in Pakistan for 15 years.
Ambika Soni (2006-2012)
She is an Indian politician belonging to Indian National Congress. She had served as Minister of Information and Broadcasting. She is a Member of Parliament representing the state of Punjab in the Rajya Sabha.
| Minister of Tourism and Culture |
| In office 29 January 2006 – 22 May 2009 |
| Minister of Information and Broadcasting Government of India |
| In office 22 May 2009 – 27 October 2012 |
She began her political career in 1969 when she was co-opted into the Congress Party by Indira Gandhi at the time of the Party split in 1969. Soni was an old family friend of Gandhi from the time when her father was posted as District collector of Amritsar during the Partition of India and worked very closely with Jawaharlal Nehru.[5] In 1975 she was elected president of the Indian Youth Congress and worked closely with Sanjay Gandhi.[6] In March 1976 she was elected to Rajya Sabha. In 1998 she became the president of All India Mahila Congress. From 1999 – 2006 she was General Secretary of All India Congress Committee. In January 2000 she was again elected to Rajya Sabha and resigned on 10 June 2004. In July 2004 she was again elected to Rajya Sabha. From 29 January 2006 – 22 May 2009 she was Minister of Tourism and Minister of Culture in the UPA I government. From 22 May 2009 – 27 October 2012 she was Minister of Information and Broadcasting in UPA II government.[7] In July 2010 she was re-elected to Rajya Sabha.
Mamta Banerjee
She is an Indian politician who is serving as the 9th and current Chief Minister of West Bengal since 2011, the first woman to hold the office. She founded the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC or TMC) party in 1998 after separating from the Indian National Congress, and became its first chairperson. Banerjee previously served twice as Minister of Railways, the first woman to do so.[7] She is also the first female Minister of Coal, and Minister of Human Resource Development, Youth Affairs and Sports, Women and Child Development in the cabinet of the Indian government.
Railway Minister (first tenure), 1999—2000
In 1999, she joined the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government and became Railways Minister. In 2000, Banerjee presented her first Railway Budget. In it, she fulfilled many of her promises to her home state West Bengal. She introduced a new biweekly New Delhi-Sealdah Rajdhani Express train and four express trains connecting various parts of West Bengal, namely the Howrah-Purulia Rupasi Bangla Express, the Sealdah-New Jalpaiguri Padatik Express, the Shalimar-Adra Aranyak Express, the Sealdah-Ajmer Ananya Superfast Express, and Sealdah-Amritsar Akal Takht Superfast Express. She also increased the frequency of the Pune-Howrah Azad Hind Express and extended at least three express train services. Work on the Digha-Howrah Express service was also hastened during her brief tenure.
She also focused on developing tourism, enabling the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway section to obtain two additional locomotives and proposing the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited. She also commented that India should play a pivotal role in the Trans-Asian Railway and that rail links between Bangladesh and Nepal would be reintroduced. In all, she introduced 19 new trains for the 2000–2001 fiscal year
Minister of Coal and Mines, January 2004 – May 2004
On 9 January 2004 she took charge as Ministry of Coal and Mines.During her short term as the minister of coal and mines, the government disallowed sell of National Aluminium Company.She held the Coal and Mines portfolios till 22 May 2004
Meira Kumar
She is an Indian politician and former diplomat. A member of the Indian National Congress, she was the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment from 2004 to 2009, the Minister of Water Resources for a brief period in 2009, and the 15th Speaker of Lok Sabha from 2009 to 2014. Kumar became just the second woman to be nominated for president of India by a major political bloc when she secured the United Progressive Alliance’s nomination in 2017.
| Minister of Water Resources |
| In office 22 May 2009 – 25 May 2009 |
| Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment |
| In office 22 May 2004 – 22 May 2009 |
Kumar was appointed as member of the Ministry of External Affairs’ Consultative Committee in 1986. Following the Congress party’s win in the 2004 Indian general elections, Kumar served in the United Progressive Alliance’s Government as the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment from 2004 to 2009, under the premiership of Manmohan Singh.
Selja Kumari (2009-2014)
She is an Indian politician and former parliamentarian. A member of the Indian National Congress, she has been the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment and Tourism in the Government of India during Manmohan Singh’s premiership.
| Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment |
| In office 28 October 2012 – 28 January 2014 |
| Minister of Tourism |
| In office 28 May 2009 – 19 January 2011 |
Following her election to the 15th Lok Sabha from Ambala, Selja was appointed the Minister of Tourism in Manmohan Singh’s second cabinet. She visited such countries as Italy and Cyprus aimed at improving international relations during her time in office.
In March 2011, Selja was issued notices by the Punjab and Haryana High Court over a petition that has accused her of “forgery, criminal intimidation, fabrication and hatching a criminal conspiracy”. Selja later took oath as Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment in 2012. She remained in office for five years until the completion of her term in May 2014, a period during which she worked on issues relating to empowerment of women and rights of marginalised communities.
Maharani Chandresh Kumari Katoch (2009-2014)
She is an Indian politician belonging to the Indian National Congress party. She is a former Minister of Culture in India’s central government. She was a Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha (the lower house of parliament), representing Jodhpur constituency. Katoch was sworn in as Cabinet Minister in the Government of India on 28 October 2012, and was given the portfolio of the Ministry of Culture.
Uma Bharti
She is an Indian politician and former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh. She became involved with the BJP at a young age.
| Cabinet Minister, Government of India | |
| In office 16 May 2014 – 24 May 2019 | |
| Ministry | Term |
| Ministry of Drinking Water & Sanitation | 3 September 2017 – 24 May 2019 |
| Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation | 16 May 2014 – 3 September 2017 |
| In office 7 November 2000 – 29 January 2003 | |
| Ministry | Term |
| Ministry of Coal | 26 August 2002 – 29 January 2003 |
| Ministry of Mines | 26 August 2002 – 29 January 2003 |
| Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports | 7 November 2000 – 25 August 2002 |
In the 1999 Lok Sabha elections, Bharti switched constituencies and won the Bhopal seat. She became a cabinet member of the Vajpayee administration, and held various state- and cabinet-level portfolios, being those for Human Resource Development, Tourism, Youth Affairs and Sports, and finally Coal and Mines.
Najma Akbar Ali Heptulla
She is an Indian politician and Governor of Manipur and the Chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia, and former vice-president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and a six time member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian parliament, between 1980 and 2016, and Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha for sixteen years. She was a member representing Rajasthan from July 2004 to July 2010. She was nominated by the BJP for the Rajya Sabha in 2012 from Madhya Pradesh, and assumed her office on 24 April 2012.
| Minister of Minority Affairs |
| In office 26 May 2014 – 12 July 2016 |
Maneka Sanjay Gandhi
She is an Indian politician, animal rights activist, and environmentalist. She is a member of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian parliament and a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
| Minister of Women and Child Development |
| In office 26 May 2014 – 24 May 2019 |
Gandhi is a self-described environmentalist and animal rights leader in India. She won Human Achiever Award in the field of Women Empowerment and Children Welfare by Mrs Caroline W/O Ambassador Of Namibia and Ms Senorita Issac, founder & Chairperson, Human Achiever Foundation, India.
Harsimrat Kaur Badal
She is an Indian politician and a former Union Cabinet Minister of Food Processing Industries in the Government of India and Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha from Bathinda. She is a member of Shiromani Akali Dal Party.
| Minister for Food Processing Industries |
| In office 26 May 2014 – 17 September 2020 |
She resigned from the cabinet on 17 September 2020 to protest against the new farm bills passed by the government.
Smriti Zubin Irani
She is an Indian politician, former model, television actress, and producer. Irani is a Minister in the Union Cabinet of India. She is serving in the cabinet of Narendra Modi as Minister of Textiles and was given additional charge as Minister of Women and Child Development in the 2nd cabinet of Modi since May 2019. A prominent leader within the Bharatiya Janata Party, she is a Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha, representing Amethi.
Union Minister for Human Resource Development (May 2014 to July 2016)
In her term as the HRD minister, Smt. Irani undertook a number of decisions which helped in improving the quality, inclusivity and outcome of education in the country. Some of the key achievements have been listed as under :
- The Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN)
- Udaan Yojana and Pragati Scheme
- Know Your College Portal
- The IMPacting Research INnovation and Technology (IMPRINT)
- National institute Ranking Framework
- SWAYAM -Study Webs of Active Learning for Young Aspiring Minds
- Veer Gatha series
Union Minister for Textile :(July 2016 to present)
Smt. Irani was appointed as the Textile Minister in the year 2016, taking over from Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar.[69] She has held the position of the Union Minister of textiles since 2016 and retained the portfolio in the new cabinet post the 2019 elections.[70] Her contribution to the sector has also been appreciated by the textile council TEXPROCIL.[71] Various industry bodies such as the Clothing Manufacturers Association of India, Indian Texpreneurs Federation (ITF), hailed her re-appointment as the Union Minister for Textiles.
- Apparel Sector Special Package
- Support for Technical Textile
- Special focus on the North Estern Regions
- Silk Samagra workshop
- Samarth Scheme
Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting (July 2017 to May 2018)
During Mrs. Irani term as I&B Minister, State-run broadcaster Doordarshan net revenue rose to Rs 827.51 crore in the financial year 2017,surpassing its annual target of Rs 800 crore
Union Minister for Women and Child Developments (May 2019 – present)
In the second term of the Modi Government, Smt. Irani was appointed the key portfolio Union Minister for Women and Child Development.
- Committee on Gender Budgeting
- Amendment to the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2019
- Bharatiya Poshan Krishi Kosh
Nirmala Sitharaman
She is an Indian politician serving as the current Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs of India. She is a member of the Rajya Sabha, upper house of the Indian Parliament, since 2014. Sitharaman formerly served as the Defence Minister of India, thereby becoming India’s second female defence minister and also the second female finance minister after Indira Gandhi and first full-time female Finance Minister. She has served as the Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs under the Ministry of Finance and the Minister for Commerce and Industry with independent charge.
| Minister of Finance |
| Incumbent |
| Assumed office 30 May 2019 |
| Minister of Corporate Affairs |
| Incumbent |
| Assumed office 30 May 2019 |
| Minister of Defence |
| In office 3 September 2017 – 30 May 2019 |
| Minister of Commerce and Industry[2] |
| In office 26 May 2014 – 3 September 2017 |
She presented her maiden budget in the Indian parliament on 5 July 2019. Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2020–21 on 1 February 2020.During the COVID-19 pandemic in India she was made in-charge of the COVID-19 Economic Response Task Force.
She presented her maiden budget in the Indian parliament on 5 July 2019.Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2020–21 on 1 February 2020.During the COVID-19 pandemic in India she was made in-charge of the COVID-19 Economic Response Task Force
Niranjan Jyoti
She is an Indian politician belonging to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). She was appointed the Minister of State for Food Processing Industries in November 2014. On 30 May 2019, she was appointed Minister of state in the Ministry of Rural Development in the Narendra Modi 2019 Cabinet.
She represents the Fatehpur constituency, Uttar Pradesh, in the Lok Sabha, after winning in the 2014 general election.[3] She also represents the Hamirpur constituency in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly after winning in the 2012 election.
| Minister of State for Rural Development |
| Incumbent |
| Assumed office 30 May 2019 |
| Minister of State for Food Processing Industries |
| In office 8 November 2014 – 30 May 2019 |
A brief note on Cabinet Secretary of India
The cabinet secretary of India holds the senior most post in the Indian civil servants list. The post comes with responsibility of heading the civil services board, the Indian Administrative services and all the other civil services under the rules of business of the government. The cabinet secretary is commanded by the Prime Minister of India. The cabinet secretary can hold the office charge for a maximum of 4 years. The cabinet secretary is liable for ensuring that the civil service is furnished with the skills and capability to meet the day to day tasks it faces and that the civil servants work in a fair and decent manner.
At present Mr. Rajiv Gauba holds the position of cabinet secretary of India who was given this position in August 2019.He himself is an IAS officer, and is currently the 32nd cabinet secretary of India. Mr. NR Pillai was the first cabinet secretary of India who was inducted on 6th February 1950.
After a short brief let us now see what the functions of the position in one liner are.
- The incumbent acts as the chief coordinator of the central government.
- The cabinet secretary of India provides an element of continuity and stability to administration during crises.
- Acts as prime adviser to the Prime minister of India.
- To provide all possible assistance to the council of ministers.
- Prepares the minutes of cabinet meetings.
- The cabinet secretary of India is the chairman of all civil service boards.
Let us now have a look at the role of the cabinet secretary of India.
The Cabinet Secretariat ensures that the President of India, the Vice-President and Ministers are kept informed of the major activities of all departments by means of a monthly summary of their activities. Management of major crisis situations in the country and coordinating activities of the various ministries in such a situation is also one of the functions of the Cabinet Secretariat. The Cabinet Secretariat is responsible for the administration of the Transaction of Business Rules, 1961 and the Allocation of Business Rules, 1961 of the Government of India, facilitating smooth transaction of business in ministries/departments of the Government by ensuring adherence to these rules. The Secretariat assists in decision-making in Government by ensuring Inter-Ministerial coordination, leveling out differences amongst ministries and evolving consensus through the instrumentality of the standing Committees of Secretaries. Through this mechanism, new policy initiatives are also promoted.
The cabinet secretary of India resides in the official bungalow which is located at, 32 Prithviraj Road New Delhi. Looking at the salary as to what a cabinet secretary earns is around 250000 per month. This is after application of 7th pay commission.
Given below is the list of all cabinet secretaries of India:
| Sr No | Name |
| 1 | N. R. Pillai |
| 2 | Y. N. Sukthankar |
| 3 | M. K. Vellodi |
| 4 | Vishnu Sahay |
| 5 | B. N. Jha |
| 6 | Vishnu Sahay |
| 7 | S. S. Khera |
| 8 | Dharma Vira |
| 9 | D. S. Joshi |
| 10 | B. Sivaraman |
| 11 | T. Swaminathan |
| 12 | B. D. Pande |
| 13 | N. K. Mukarji |
| 14 | S. S. Grewal |
| 15 | C. R. Krishnaswamy Rao Sahib |
| 16 | P. K. Kaul |
| 17 | B. G. Deshmukh |
| 18 | T. N. Seshan |
| 19 | V. C. Pande |
| 20 | Naresh Chandra |
| 21 | S. Rajagopal |
| 22 | Zafar Saifullah |
| 23 | Surendra Singh |
| 24 | T. S. R. Subramanian |
| 25 | Prabhat Kumar |
| 26 | T. R. Prasad |
| 27 | Kamal Pande |
| 28 | B. K. Chaturvedi |
| 29 | K. M. Chandrasekhar |
| 30 | Ajit Seth |
| 31 | P. K. Sinha |
| 32 | Rajiv Gauba |
FAQs
Q1. Who is the education minister of India 2020
A1. Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ is the education minister. His constituency is Haridwar. He is currently working to improve the online mode of education due to the COVID-19 pandemic and holding live webinar sessions with students nationwide to hear their grievances. He has written 44 books in the Hindi language. One of his works was adapted into the Garhwali film Major Nirala, which was produced by his daughter Arushi Nishank Pant and released in 2018.
Q2. Who is the health minister of India 2020?
A2. India’s current health minister is Dr. Harsh Vardhan. His constituency is Chadni Chowk. He is also the chairperson of the Executive Board of the World Health Organization from May 22, 2020. He has a biography titled, A tale of two drops, 2018.
Some important works done under him:
- Successful implementation of Pulse Polio Programme.
- Implemented first anti tobacco law led by a state government in Delhi.
- Declared reservation for academic calendar 2020-2021 in MBBS and BDS colleges for the children of COVID-19 workers who died during pandemic in India.
Awards and recognitions:
- IMA President’s Special Award of Appreciation, 1994
- Director-General’s Polio Eradication Champion Award, WHO 1998
- Polio Eradication Champion Award by the Rotary International in 2001
- “Doctor of the last Decade” (Swasthya Ratna) by IMA 2002
Q3. Who is the youngest cabinet minister of India?
A3. Sushma swaraj was a senior leader of Bharatiya Janata Party, Swaraj served as the Minister of External Affairs of India in the first Narendra Modi government (2014–2019). She was the second woman to hold the office, after Indira Gandhi. At the age of 25 in 1977 she became the youngest cabinet minister of Indian state of Haryana. As External Affairs Minister, she played a pivotal role in bringing back the then 23-year-old hearing and speech-impaired Indian girl named Gita who was stranded in Pakistan for 15 years.
Q4. Who is the food minister of India 2020?
A4. Piyush Vedprakash Goyal (born 13 June 1964) is a politician and cabinet minister of the Government of India having portfolios such as Minister of Railways, Minister of Commerce and Industry and Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution. He was elevated to the Cabinet Minister position on 3 September 2017. Currently a Member of Parliament for Rajya Sabha from the state of Maharashtra, he is also the Deputy Leader of Rajya Sabha.
Earlier, he held the post of the National Treasurer of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
After the demise of Ram Vilas Paswan, he took over the additional charge of the Ministry of Consumer Affairs Food & Public Distribution on 9 October 2020.
Q5. What is a Shadow Cabinet?
A5. The concept of a shadow cabinet is popular in some of the western democracies such as the United Kingdom. Opposition parties form an alternative cabinet that scrutinises decisions taken by the government.
In other words, the shadow cabinet or shadow ministry is a feature of the Westminster system of government. It consists of a senior group of opposition spokespeople who, under the leadership of the Leader of the Opposition, form an alternative cabinet to that of the government, and whose members shadow or mirror the positions of each individual member of the Cabinet. Members of a shadow cabinet have no executive power. It is the shadow cabinet’s responsibility to scrutinise the policies and actions of the government, as well as to offer alternative policies. The shadow cabinet makes up the majority of the Official Opposition frontbench.
Experiments in India
There have been multiple experiments with running shadow cabinets in India. However, these have happened only at the State Level.
In 2005, a shadow cabinet was formed by the opposition BJP and Shiv Sena in Maharashtra to counter then chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh-led Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) government.
The Congress had also formed a shadow cabinet in Madhya Pradesh in 2014 to counter the Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led government.
In 2015, a shadow cabinet was formed in the coastal state of Goa. However, it was not formed by the opposition, but by a non-governmental organisation Gen Next.
The most recent example came from Kerala where a shadow cabinet was formed in April 2018 by civil society members to analyse policies of the Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) government. The members included social activists, not members of the Opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF).
Q6. What is a Kitchen Cabinet?
A6. A kitchen cabinet is an informal body that consists of the Prime Minister and 2 to 4 ministers who are his/her faithful and influential colleagues.
Q7. Who is the oldest cabinet minister in the present cabinet?
A7. Shri Thaawar Chand Gehlot is the Oldest Cabinet Minister in the Present Cabinet.
Thaawar Chand Gehlot (born 18 May 1948 – 73 years of age) is an Indian politician who currently serves as the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment in the NDA Government. He is now the Leader of the House in the upper house of the Indian Parliament. He is also a member of the Parliamentary Board and the Central Election Committee of the BJP.
He is the most noticeable face of BJP for the Scheduled Castes. He represents the constituency of Shajapur in Madhya Pradesh.
He took Initiatives for the passage of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill in Parliament and enforcement of the amended SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and the passage of the long-pending Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill.
