Suresh Gopi and George Kurian Assigned Key Portfolios in Modi’s Third Government
The portfolio allocation for ministers in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s third government has been finalized. Thrissur MP Suresh Gopi has been appointed as Minister of State in two departments, specifically Tourism and Petroleum. He will be working under the direction of Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, the Minister of Tourism, and Hardeep Singh Puri, the Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas. Additionally, George Kurian has been designated as Minister of State for Minority Affairs, Animal Welfare, and Fisheries. He will collaborate with Minority Affairs Minister Kiran Rijiju and Dairy, Animal Husbandry, and Fisheries Minister Lalan Singh. Both ministers are set to assume their duties today.
The senior BJP leaders have largely retained their significant portfolios. Amit Shah continues as the Home Minister, Rajnath Singh as the Defense Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman as the Finance Minister, and S. Jaishankar as the Minister of External Affairs. Despite claims from BJP allies for the Railway Minister position, Ashwini Vaishnaw will maintain his role and also take on the additional responsibility of the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting. BJP national president JP Nadda has been assigned the Health Department.
Nitin Gadkari remains the Minister of Road Transport and Highways. Other ministers from Modi’s second government who have retained their posts include Hardeep Puri (Petroleum and Natural Gas), Piyush Goyal (Commerce and Industry), Dharmendra Pradhan (Education), and Sarbananda Sonowal (Ports, Shipping, and Waterways).
Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will now oversee Agriculture and Rural Development, while former Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has been named the new Housing and Urban Affairs and Power Minister. The first cabinet meeting of Modi’s third government took place this evening. Kiren Rijiju has been transferred to the Parliamentary Affairs Department, and Jyotiraditya Scindia, formerly the Aviation Minister, has been reassigned to the Telecom Department.
Among BJP allies, TDP’s Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu has been given the Civil Aviation portfolio, Janata Dal-Secular’s H. D. Kumaraswamy has been appointed Minister of Heavy Industry and Steel, and HAM-S’s Jitan Ram Manjhi is the new MSME Industry Minister. Janata Dal-United’s Rajiv Ranjan Singh, also known as Lalan Singh, has received the portfolios of Panchayati Raj and Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying. Lok Janshakti Party-Ram Vilas chief Chirag Paswan is now the Minister for Food Processing Industries.
