Cabinet Reshuffle LIVE: Anurag Thakur takes charge as new I&B minisiter

Modi Cabinet Reshuffle LIVE: Union Home Minister Amit Shah is now the new head of the newly formed Ministry of Cooperation. Stay tuned for LIVE updates

9:40 PM

Mansukh Mandaviya becomes health minister: TV

Mansukh Mandaviya, who was the minister of state for chemical and fertilisers earlier, has become the Union health minister, a position previously held by Dr Harsh Vardhan. 

9:39 PM

Amit Shah becomes Cooperation Minister: TV reports

Home Minister Amit Shah has been given charge of the newly crealy Union cooperation ministry, say TV reports  

9:34 PM

Cabinet, Council of Ministers likely to meet on Thursday

The Union Cabinet and the Council of Ministers are likely to meet on Thursday, a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi carried out a major expansion and reshuffle of his ministers.
 

It is usual for the prime minister to convene meetings of the Union Cabinet as well as the Council of Ministers after a reshuffle or expansion exercise.
 

The two meetings would be held back-to-back Thursday evening, sources said.
 

Last week, the prime minister had chaired meetings of the Cabinet and the Council of Ministers. The Council had discussed the situation arising out of the coronavirus pandemic with the PM asking the ministers to create an environment where people follow Covid-appropriate behaviour and get themselves vaccinated.
 

9:25 PM

Will work with all sincerity, dedication: Sarbananda Sonowal after taking oath as Union minister

Former Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Wednesday said he would discharge his duties as a Union cabinet minister with all sincerity and dedication and do his best for the welfare of the people.
 

Thanking Prime Minister Narendra Modi for reposing faith in him, Sonowal said he is also grateful to the people of Assam for their love and support during his long public life.
 

"I will work with all sincerity and dedication and for the welfare of the people. It is a big responsibility and I seek cooperation from everyone in my new journey," he told reporters soon after taking oath as a union cabinet minister in the Modi government.
 

Sonowal, 58, thanked the Prime Minister, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP President J P Nadda for choosing him to serve the nation in a new capacity.
 

"I am particularly grateful to the Prime Minister for giving five ministerial berth to the Northeastern region," he said.
 

Sonowal gracefully exited the post of Assam's chief minister even though his government was voted back to power in the assembly elections in March-April.
 

In the past, he was elected twice to Lok Sabha and served as the union sports and skill development minister in the first Modi government from 2014 to 2016 before becoming Assam's chief minister.
 

9:20 PM

Bidar MP Khuba who vanquished Cong heavyweights gets Union berth

Bhagwanth Khuba, a two time Lok Sabha member, hails from the politically dominant Lingayat community which the BJP considers as its key vote base in north Karnataka.
 

His induction into the Union ministry on Wednesday is being seen as a move to fill up Lingayat representation in the cabinet that had fallen vacant following the death of Suresh Angadi, due to Covid-19 in September last year, who was serving as Minister of State for Railways.
 

An engineering graduate, Khuba (54), was involved in a family business and had never fought an election before he entered the Lok Sabha in 2014, by defeating political giant from the region, Congress veteran and former Chief Minister late N Dharam Singh in Bidar segment.
 

He again won the seat in 2019, by defeating another Congress heavyweight in the region Eshwar B Khandre. The fight against the two Lingayat leaders in the community's bastion was keenly watched.
 

Born on June 1, 1967 at Aurad in Bidar, he obtained B.E. (Mech.) from Sree Siddaganga Institute of Technology, Tumakuru.
 

He is currently a member of the Standing Committee on Agriculture, and Consultative Committee, Ministry of Railways.

9:20 PM

With 2 cabinet and 3 MoS berths, PM Modi rewards NE region handsomely

With two cabinet ministers and three ministers of state, the Northeastern region was on Wednesday handsomely rewarded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the first reshuffle of his ministry in the second tenure.
 

The BJP had won 14 out of the region's 25 Lok Sabha constituencies in the 2019 Parliamentary elections while its allies had bagged five.
 

Among those who were administered oath Wednesday evening include Sarbananda Sonowal, who gracefully exited the post of Assam's chief minister even though his government was voted back to power in the assembly elections in March-April.
 

Sonowal, 58, is currently an MLA in Assam's Majuli and is expected to come to Rajya Sabha when the election will be held to a vacant seat of the Upper House from the state.
 

Sonowal was also twice elected to Lok Sabha in the past and was the sports and skill development minister in the first Modi government from 2014 to 2016 before becoming the chief minister of Assam.
 

Union Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju, who was holding the charge of minister of state with independent charge, has also taken oath as a cabinet minister.
 

Rijiju, 49, is a three-time Lok Sabha MP from Arunachal West constituency and was a minister of state for home in the first Modi government from 2014-2019.

Lok Sabha MP from Tripura West, Pratima Bhoumik, has also taken oath as minister of state.
 

The 52-year-old BJP leader was elected to the Lower House for the first time in 2019 and has become a union minister from Tripura after almost three decades.

Rajkumar Ranjan Singh, who took oath as minister of state, is a first-time MP of the BJP from Inner Manipur seat.
 

Sixty-eight year old Singh was a professor of geography for four decades before becoming a lawmaker of the saffron party two years ago.

The Modi government also has a minister of state from Assam in Rameswar Teli.
 

A two-term Lok Sabha MP, 50-year old Teli is so far holding the charge of the union minister of state for food processing industries.

8:53 PM

Cabinet reshuffle LIVE updates: Will do justice to whatever portfolio PM decides, says Anupriya Patel

Our party is in alliance with NDA in UP since 2014. I have worked as State Health Minister but whatever portfolio PM decides, I will do justice with it. Apna Dal will continue to work for the welfare of people: Anupriya Patel after being inducted as MoS.

8:43 PM

Cabinet reshuffle LIVE updates: Will continue working to fulfil aspirations of the people, says PM Modi

8:36 PM

Cabinet reshuffle LIVE updates: First council of ministers meeting to be held tomorrow

8:23 PM

Cabinet reshuffle LIVE updates: Amit Shah congratulates 43 ministers who took oath

8:22 PM

Cabinet reshuffle Latest: Average age of new council of ministers reduces to 58 years from 61 years

The average age of the new council of ministers has reduced to 58 years from 61 years previously following a cabinet reshuffle.

 

Nisith Pramanik (35), the Lok Sabha MP from West Bengal's Cooch Behar, is the youngest minister to be sworn in, while the oldest member in the council of ministers is 72-year-old Som Parkash.

 

There are 77 members in the council of ministers now.

 

Other ministers below 50 years of age in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet are -- Smriti Irani (45), Kiren Rijiju (49), Mansukh Mandaviya (49), Kailash Choudhary (47), Sanjeev Balyan (49), Anurag Thakur (46), Dr Bharati Pravin Pawar (42), Anupriya Singh Patel (40), Shantanu Thakur (38), John Barla (45) and Dr L Murugan (44).

 

The average age of the newly-sworn in 43 ministers is 56 years while the average age of the new council of ministers is 58 years. Previously, the average age of the council of ministers was 61 years. (PTI)

8:17 PM

Cabinet reshuffle LIVE updates: Will make an all-out effort to accomplish whatever job I get, says Rijiju

With the blessings of all the senior leaders, I have been given the responsibility to serve the people. I will make an all-out effort to accomplish whatever job I get: Kiren Rijiju after being sworn-in as Union Cabinet Minister.
 

8:03 PM

Cabinet reshuffle LIVE: New CoM will give added momentum to inclusive development, says Smriti Irani

7:56 PM

Team Modi 2.0: 15 ministers inducted into Cabinet, 28 sworn in as MoS

Effecting a big reset, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday brought in Sarbananda Sonowal, Narayan Rane and Jyotiraditya Scindia as Cabinet ministers while dropping as many as 12 ministers including Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, IT and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and I&B Minister Prakash Javadekar.

 

As many as 15 Cabinet ministers, including some new faces, were sworn-in at the swearing in ceremony held in the Darbar Hall of the Rashtrapati Bhawan. While 13 members took oath in Hindi, two took in English. Read here

7:35 PM

Cabinet reshuffle LIVE updates: Leaders inducted as Ministers of State

• Pankaj Choudhary
• Anupriya Patel
• Satya Pal Singh Baghel
• Rajeev Chandrasekhar
• Shobha Karandlaje
• Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma
• Darshana Vikram Jardosh
• Meenakshi Lekhi
• Annpurna Devi
• A Narayanaswamy
• Kaushal Kishore
• Ajay Bhatt
• B L Verma
• Ajay Kumar
• Chauhan Devusinh
• Bhagwanth Khuba
• Kapil Moreshwar Patil
• Pratima Bhoumik
• Dr Subhas Sarkar
• Dr Bhagwat Kishanrao Karad
• Dr Rajkumar Ranjan Singh 
• Dr Bharati Pravin Pawar
• Bishweswar Tudu
• Shantanu Thakur
• Dr Munjapara Mahendrabhai
• John Barla
• Dr L Murugan
• Nisith Pramanik