Olympic silver-medallist Rajyavardhan Rathore on Monday took charge as the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Youth Affairs and Sports.
Rathore, who was till now serving as Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting, had earlier today said that he would focus on providing sportspersons across the country both 'suvidha and sammaan' (facilities and respect) so that they can improve their game and win laurels for the nation.
In a major cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rathore replaced Vijay Goel, who has been made the Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, on the post.
Rathore, country's first Olympic silver medallist, has three Commonwealth Gold medals, and two World Championship Gold medals as well to his name.
Colonel Rathore stepped into the shooting range in the mid 1990s. After his premature retirement from the Indian Army, the 47-year-old joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2013 and was sworn in as Minister of State when the Modi Government came to power in May, 2014.