Bharatpedia

Union Council of Ministers


The Union Council of Ministers[1] is the principal executive organ of the Government of India, which functions as the senior decision making body of the executive branch. It is chaired by the prime minister and consists of the heads of each of the executive government ministries. Currently, the council is headed by prime minister Narendra Modi and consists of 29 members, including the prime minister. The council is subject to the Parliament of India.

Union Council of Ministers
Flag of India.svg
Government of India logo.svg
Emblem of the Republic of India
Agency overview
Formed15 August 1947; 77 years ago (1947-08-15)
TypeHighest executive body of the federal government
JurisdictionGovernment of the Republic of India
HeadquartersNew Delhi
MottoSatyameva Jayate (Truth always prevails)
Agency executives
Child agencies
  • Cabinet
  • Ministries of the Government of India
Websiteenglish.www.gov.in

A smaller executive body called the Union Cabinet is the supreme decision-making body in India; it is a subset of the Union Council of Ministers who hold important portfolios and ministries of the government.[2]

RegulationEdit

Pursuant to Article 75(3), the Council of Ministers is responsible collectively to the lower house of the Indian parliament, called the Lok Sabha (House of the People).[3] 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.

A minister shall take any decision without being considered by the council of ministers per Article 78(c). All union cabinet members shall submit in writing to the President to propose a proclamation of emergency by the president in accordance with Article 352.

According to the Constitution of India, the total number of ministers in the council of ministers must not exceed 15% of the total number of members of the Lok Sabha. Ministers must be members of parliament. Any minister who is not a member of either of the houses of the parliament for six consecutive months is automatically stripped off his or her ministerial post.[3]

RankingEdit

There are five categories of the council of ministers as given below, in descending order of rank:

  • Prime Minister: Leader of the executive of the Government of India.
  • Deputy Prime Minister (if any): Presides as prime minister in his absence or as the senior most cabinet minister.[4]
  • Cabinet Minister: A member of the Union cabinet; leads a ministry.
  • Minister of State (Independent charge): Junior minister not reporting to a Cabinet Minister.
  • Minister of State (MoS): Deputy Minister reporting to a Cabinet Minister, usually tasked with a specific responsibility in that ministry.

AppointmentEdit

Pursuant to Article 75, a minister who works at the pleasure of the president, is appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister. Since at least the turn of the millennia, evidence indicates that an MP's electoral performance enhances the likelihood of being granted a ministerial portfolio.[5]

RemovalEdit

  • Upon death.
  • Upon self resignation, or resignation or death of Prime Minister.
  • Upon dismissal by the President for minister's unconstitutional acts per Article 75(2).[6]
  • Upon 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.[7]

Council of Ministers in state governmentsEdit

Every state in India is governed by its council of ministers with rules and procedures similar to the union council of ministers per Articles 163, 164 and 167(c).

In March 2020, the Supreme Court of India used its powers for the first time to do "complete justice" under Article 142 of the Indian Constitution to remove a minister functioning in the state of Manipur.[8]

Current Union Council of MinistersEdit

Further information: Second Modi ministry

Council portfolios are as follows:[9][10][11]

Cabinet MinistersEdit

Portfolio Minister Took office Left office Party
Prime Minister
Minister of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
Department of Atomic Energy
Department of Space
(All important policy issues and other portfolios not allocated to any minister)		   Narendra Modi30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Defence   Rajnath Singh30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Home Affairs
Minister of Co-operation		   Amit Shah30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Finance
Minister of Corporate Affairs		   Nirmala Sitharaman30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Road Transport and Highways  Nitin Gadkari30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of External Affairs   Subrahmanyam Jaishankar30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare   Narendra Singh Tomar30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Education
Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship		   Dharmendra Pradhan7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Commerce and Industry
Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
Minister of Textiles		   Piyush Goyal30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Women and Child Development
Minister of Minority Affairs		   Smriti Zubin Irani30 May 2019
22 July 2022		IncumbentBJP
Minister of Tribal Affairs   Arjun Munda30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment   Virendra Kumar7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Health and Family Welfare
Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers		 File:Mansukh Mandaviya Profile.png Mansukh L. Mandaviya7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
Minister of Labour and Employment		   Bhupender Yadav7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises   Mahendra Nath Pandey30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Parliamentary Affairs
Minister of Coal
Minister of Mines		   Pralhad Joshi30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Jal Shakti   Gajendra Singh Shekhawat30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises   Narayan Tatu Rane7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries
   Parshottam Rupala7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Railways
Minister of Communications
Minister of Electronics and Information Technology		   Ashwini Vaishnaw7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways
Minister of AYUSH		   Sarbananda Sonowal7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Rural Development
Minister of Panchayati Raj		   Giriraj Singh7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Civil Aviation
Minister of Steel		   Jyotiraditya Scindia7 July 2021
6 July 2022		IncumbentBJP
Minister of Food Processing Industries File:Pashupati Kumar Paras.jpg Pashupati Kumar Paras7 July 2021IncumbentLJP
Minister of Power
Minister of New and Renewable Energy		   Raj Kumar Singh7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas
Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs		   Hardeep Singh Puri7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Culture
Minister of Tourism
Minister of Development of North Eastern Region		   G. Kishan Reddy7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of Information and Broadcasting
Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports		   Anurag Thakur7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Reference: Official Government of India publication, 31 May 2019

Ministers of State (Independent Charge)Edit

Portfolio Minister Took office Left office Party
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Statistics and Programme Implementation
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Planning
Minister of State in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs		 Rao Inderjit Singh30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Ministry of Science and Technology
Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office
Minister of State in the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
Minister of State in the Department of Atomic Energy
Minister of State in the Department of Space		 Jitendra Singh30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Ministry of Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal18 May 2023[12]IncumbentBJP
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Ministry of Earth Sciences Kiren Rijiju18 May 2023[13]IncumbentBJP

Ministers of StateEdit


Portfolio Minister Took office Left office Party
Minister of State in the Ministry of Railways Darshana Jardosh7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Raosaheb Danve7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Textiles Darshana Jardosh7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Steel Faggan Singh Kulaste30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Rural Development Faggan Singh Kulaste30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
 Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Bharati Pravin Pawar7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs V. Muraleedharan30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
 Arjun Ram Meghwal30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of External Affairs V. Muraleedharan30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
 Meenakshi Lekhi7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Rajkumar Ranjan Singh7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Culture Arjun Ram Meghwal30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
 Meenakshi Lekhi7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways
Minister of State in the Ministty of Civil Aviation		 General (Retd.) V. K. Singh30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale30 May 2019IncumbentRPI(A)
 Abbaiah Narayanaswamy7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Pratima Bhoumik7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ashwini Kumar Choubey7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Ashwini Kumar Choubey7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs Nityanand Rai Yadav30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
 Ajay Kumar Mishra7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Nisith Pramanik7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shobha Karandlaje7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Kailash Choudhary30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries L. Murugan7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Sanjeev Kumar Balyan7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting L. Murugan7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Education Annpurna Devi Yadav7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Rajkumar Ranjan Singh7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Subhas Sarkar7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs Renuka Singh30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
 Bishweswar Tudu7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry Som Parkash30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
 Anupriya Patel7 July 2021IncumbentApna Dal (Sonelal)
Minister of State in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas
Minister of State in the Ministry of Labour and Employment		 Rameswar Teli30 May 2019IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Women and Child Development
Minister of State in the Ministry of AYUSH		 Mahendra Munjapara7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance Bhagwat Karad7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Pankaj Choudhary7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Law and Justice S. P. Singh Baghel7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Tourism Ajay Bhatt7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Shripad Naik7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Defence Ajay Bhatt7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region
Minister of State in the Ministry of Co-operation		 B. L. Verma7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy
Minister of State in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers		 Bhagwanth Khuba7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Jal Shakti Bishweswar Tudu7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Prahlad Singh Patel7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Coal
Minister of State in the Ministry of Mines		 Raosaheb Danve7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Communications Devusinh Jesingbhai Chauhan7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Minority Affairs John Barla7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Panchayati Raj Kapil Patil7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs Kaushal Kishore7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Power
Minister of State in the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises		 Krishan Pal7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Food Processing Industries Prahlad Singh Patel7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship
Minister of State in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology		 Rajeev Chandrasekhar7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Shripad Naik7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
 Shantanu Thakur7 July 2021IncumbentBJP
Minister of State in the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports Nisith Pramanik7 July 2021IncumbentBJP

See alsoEdit

ReferencesEdit

  1. ↑ Article 58 of the Constitution of India
  2. ↑ Wikisource: Constitution of India/Part XVIII
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Wikisource:Constitution of India/Part V#Article 74 .7BCouncil of Ministers to aid and advise President.7D
  4. ↑ Rajendran, S. (13 July 2012). "Of Deputy Chief Ministers and the Constitution". The Hindu. Bangalore. ISSN 0971-751X. OCLC 13119119. Archived from the original on 1 February 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  5. ↑ Ladwig III, Walter C. (23 December 2019). "Executive Particularism and Ministerial Selection in India". Legislative Studies Quarterly. Department of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis. 44 (4): 469–493. doi:10.1111/lsq.12261.
  6. ↑ "Origin and Scope of Doctrine of Pleasure in India". Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  7. ↑ "Prime Minister & Council of Ministers - Election, Roles, Collective Responsibility - Indian Polity". BYJUS. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  8. ↑ "Supreme Court Invoked Special Powers to Remove a Minister". Drishti IAS. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  9. ↑ "Who Gets What: Cabinet Portfolios Announced. Full List Here". NDTV.com. Archived from the original on 31 May 2019. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  10. ↑ "Cabinet reshuffle: Full list of ministers in Narendra Modi's government". 8 July 2021.
  11. ↑ "Press Comm Portfolio | Government Of India | Government". Scribd.
  12. ↑ "Kiren Rijiju Replaced As Law Minister, Shifted To Earth Sciences". NDTV.com. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
  13. ↑ "Kiren Rijiju Replaced As Law Minister, Shifted To Earth Sciences". NDTV.com. Retrieved 18 May 2023.

External linksEdit

Template:Cabinet of India

Template:Councils of ministers of India

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