PM Modi Approves Revised NITI Aayog Composition, Shivraj Chouhan, NDA Allies Among 15 Union Ministers Included

The Union Government has restructured NITI Aayog, appointing senior ministers including Shivraj Singh Chauhan as ex-officio members.

File Photo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Source : PIB

The Union Government on Tuesday announced a reorganisation of the NITI Aayog, incorporating several senior ministers from the NDA government. Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan has been appointed as one of its ex-officio members.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will retain his position as chairman of NITI Aayog, while Suman K Berry will serve as the vice-chairperson. Dr. V.K. Saraswat, Professor Ramesh Chandra, Dr. V.K. Paul, and Arvind Virmani have been designated as full-time members.

Additionally, the special invitee members now include Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, Health Minister JP Nadda, Heavy Industries Minister HD Kumaraswamy, MSME Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, Panchayati Raj Minister Rajiv Ranjan aka Lalan Singh, Social Justice Minister Virendra Kumar, Civil Aviation Minister K Ram Mohan Naidu, Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram, Women and Child Welfare Minister Annapurna Devi, Food Processing Minister Chirag Paswan, and Minister of State with Independent Charge Rao Indrajit Singh.

Source: ANI

In the previous NITI Aayog, former Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar was among the ex-officio members, a role now assumed by Shivraj Singh Chauhan. Notably, Piyush Goyal and Ashwini Vaishnav, who were special invitees last term, have not been included this time. Instead, senior ministers from allied parties have been given positions, highlighting the significance of allies in Modi 3.0.

NITI Aayog

The National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog was established by a resolution of the Union Cabinet on 1 January 2015, replacing the Planning Commission. The Governing Council of NITI Aayog, which includes Chief Ministers of all States and Union Territories with legislatures, as well as Lt Governors of other Union Territories, was constituted on 16 February 2015 through a Cabinet Secretariat notification. This Governing Council was reconstituted on 19 February 2021.

The Governing Council is a crucial body tasked with creating a shared vision of national priorities and strategies, involving active participation from the States to shape the development narrative. Embodying the principles of cooperative federalism, the Council provides a platform to discuss inter-sectoral, inter-departmental, and federal issues, thus accelerating the implementation of the national development agenda.

To date, seven meetings of the Governing Council have been held under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with the participation of Chief Ministers, Lt Governors, and other Council members.