Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday handpicked new and young leaders to nurture and energise the sectors ravaged by the pandemic — from health and education to labour, civil aviation, IT and petroleum.Modi Cabinet Reshuffle Highlights: In the first Cabinet meeting after reshuffle, the Union government allocated Rs 23,000 crores package for emergency response to Covid-19. “Rs 23,123-crore package to be given to deal with Covid-19. It will be used jointly by the Central and state governments,” said the newly-appointed Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya in the first media briefing of the new cabinet.
Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said efforts will be made to provide more resources to the APMCs. Assuring that APMCs will not be done away with after farm laws, Tomar said, “Rs 1 lakh crore allocated under Atmanirbhar Bharat to Farmers Infrastructure Fund can be used by APMCs.”
A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi handpicked new and young leaders to nurture and energise the sectors ravaged by the pandemic — from health and education to labour, civil aviation, IT and petroleum, the newly sworn-in Cabinet ministers took charge of their respective ministries.
In the biggest-ever expansion of the Council of Ministers, the Prime Minister on Wednesday had assigned key responsibilities such as IT and Communication to the Wharton-educated Ashwini Vaishnaw, Health to Mansukh Mandaviya, Civil Aviation to Jyotiraditya Scindia, Education and Skill Development to Dharmendra Pradhan, Environment, Labour and Employment to Bhupendra Yadav, Information and Broadcasting to Anurag Thakur and Law to Kiren Rijiju. As many as 36 new faces were inducted and 12 sitting ministers were shown the door taking the tally in the Council of Ministers to 78 (including the PM), just a notch short of the statutory limit of 81.
In order to empower mandis, arrangements made for use of Agriculture Infrastructure Fund: Modi
Union Food Processing Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras on Thursday said he is the "real political successor" of his late brother Ram Vilas Paswan and not Chirag Paswan, who may be a claimant to his father's assets. After the death of Ram Vilas Paswan last year, a factional feud started in Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) between Paras and Paswan's son Chirag Paswan, with both sides now claiming to represent the party. LJP was founded by Ram Vilas Paswan. Paras, who was sworn in as a Cabinet Minister on Wednesday in the Narendra Modi-led government and made the Minister of Food Processing Industries, asked Chirag Paswan to do "self-introspection" about his mistakes. --PTI
Union Home Minister Amit Shah today met Ajay Kumar and Nisith Pramanik after they took charge as Ministers of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi chairs Council of Ministers meeting via video conference.
Pediatric care centers will be formed in 736 districts, 20,000 ICU beds will be created under the COVID relief fund: Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Health Minister
Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said efforts will be made to provide more resources to the APMCs. Assuring that APMCs will not be done away with after farm laws, Tomar said, “Rs 1 lakh crore allocated under Atmanirbhar Bharat to Farmers Infrastructure Fund can be used by APMCs.
"APMC can use Rs 1 lakh crore agricultire investment fund. APMC won't be finished due to farm laws," says Tomar
Decisions taken in cabinet meeting prove government committed towards agriculture sector, says Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar.
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Dropping Harsh Vardhan shows entire country's Covid work not up to the mark: DK Shivakumar
Several ministers, who took charge after a major Cabinet reshuffle, on Thursday hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his leadership and vowed to realise his vision for the country. Newly appointed Union ministers and those elevated in the Cabinet reshuffle, including Ashwini Vaishnaw, Anurag Thakur and Mansukh Mandaviya, took charge of their respective ministries on Thursday. Bureaucrat-entrepreneur-turned-politician Vaishnaw, took charge as the country's new railway minister, while Thakur who was elevated as Information and Broadcasting Minister also assumed office. --PTI
Munjapara Mahendrabhai takes charge as Minister of State in the Ministry of Women and Child Development and Minister of State in the Ministry of AYUSH.
Kiren Rijiju on Thursday took charge as the new law and justice minister and said the prime minster's vision of making an 'aatmanirbhar Bharat' (self-reliant India) also needs a robust legal system in the country. He said although he has a law degree, he does not have much experience about legal matters because he was never in the (legal) profession. "But everything can be handled with proper guidance, proper understanding of the subjects and application of right mind," he told reporters. "The prime minister's vision of making an 'aatmanirbhar Bharat' also requires a robust legal system in our country," he said, without elaborating. --PTI
New MoS, Home, Ajay Mishra takes charge in his office
Piyush Goyal takes charge as the Minister of Commerce and Industry; Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution; and Minister of Textiles
Nishad Party president Sanjay Nishad Wednesday expressed disappointment over his son and MP Praveen Nishad not being included in the Union cabinet after the reshuffle. He asked if Anupriya Patel of the Apna Dal (Sonelal) can be included in the Union council of ministers, why can't Praveen Nishad. "If Anupriya Patel of Apna Dal (Sonelal) could get a place in the council of ministers, then why MP Praveen Nishad can't? The people of Nishad community are already ditching the BJP and if the party does not rectify its mistakes, it will face the consequences in the upcoming assembly poll," he said. He said Praveen Nishad enjoys popularity in over 160 seats whereas "Anupriya Patel in just a few (assembly) seats". He added that he has conveyed his views to BJP president JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. "It is their turn to decide. However, I have full faith in them that they will take care of Praveen Nishad," he said. --PTI
Nisith Pramanik takes charge as Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs; and Minister of State in the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
Pashupati Kumar Paras takes charge as Cabinet Minister in the Ministry of Food Processing Industries.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Thursday alleged that the elevation of Alipurduar MP John Barla as Union minister proves that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supports the bifurcation of West Bengal, a charge denied by the saffron party.
Barla, one of the key architects of the BJP’s making of inroads in north Bengal, had recently demanded a separate Union territory by carving out the region from the state. He was inducted into the cabinet of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the Union Minister of State for Minority Affairs.
“The decision to elevate John Barla as Union minister proves that the BJP supports his statement regarding the division of West Bengal. The saffron should come out clean on it. He (Barla) is a divisive personality…For last two years, I haven’t seen him being able to speak properly in the Parliament, what sort of minister he will make is anybody’s guess,” TMC leader Sougata Roy said. Read more