Narendra Modi: India PM announces his biggest cabinet reshuffle Indian PM Narendra Modi has inducted 36 new ministers into his government within the largest cabinet reshuffle since he came to power in 2014. At least 12 cabinet members, including IT and health ministers, resigned before the reshuffle to create a way for his or her colleagues. The new cabinet will have 77 ministers, up from this figure of 52. The move comes before elections in important states, including the crucial battleground of state. The new cabinet has been announced amid criticism of the govt. over its handling of the pandemic and a faltering economy. The second wave of Covid-19 killed thousands and ravaged even small towns and cities. Among those who were sworn in on Wednesday are Jyotiraditya Scindia, 50, a former opposition MP who switched to Mr. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) last year; Sarbananda Sonowal, the 58-year-old former chief minister of Assam state, and former Congress party leader Narayan Rane. Presentational grey line The new cabinet: Mansukh Mandaviya – Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Jyotiraditya Scindia – Civil Aviation ministry. Kiren Rijiju – Law and Justice Ministry. Ashwini Vaishnaw – Railways and IT ministry. Anurag Thakur – Information and Broadcasting. Dharmendra Pradhan – Education ministry. Sarbananda Sonowal – Ports, Shipping, and Waterways ministry. Union Home Minister Amit Shah – Ministry of Cooperation. Presentational grey line Prominent names dropped Health Minister Harsh Vardhan is that the foremost prominent minister who resigned on Wednesday. Mr. Vardhan has been widely criticized for his handling of the pandemic. In early March, he declared the country was “in the endgame” of the pandemic – but a month before the second wave ripped through India, overwhelming hospitals and even crematoriums. India’s vaccination program has also been criticized. Just over 5% of Indians are fully vaccinated and 22% have received a minimum of 1 dose. The pace of vaccination has picked up in recent weeks, but it is not enough to satisfy the target of fully vaccinating all eligible Indians by the tip of this year. The country has been averaging around four million doses per day for the past fortnight, but it’s to achieve 8.5-9 million doses daily to satisfy its target. IT minister musician Prasad is another prominent name who has been dropped from the cabinet. His resignation comes amid growing tensions between the national and social media platforms over India’s controversial new IT laws. Environment minister Prakash Javadekar and education minister Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank have also resigned. Experts say state elections in 2022 in the state, Goa, Uttarakhand, Manipur, and Punjab appear to possess influenced some reshuffle decisions. From the politically crucial state, a minimum of six ministers is inducted into the cabinet. The BJP wants to retain the province next year as a defeat there could bring major embarrassment to Mr. Modi, who is an elected MP from the state. Mr. Modi has also inducted more women ministers this time. there are four women ministers within the sooner cabinet, but now the number is 11 with seven new members. The list includes Anupriya Patel, the leader of Uttar Pradesh-based Apna Dal (Sonelal) – an ally of the BJP. Ms. Patel was also a minister during Mr. Modi’s first term which began in 2014. variety of the other names are Meenakshi Lekhi, Annapurna Devi, and Pratima Bhaumik.
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