Gajendra Singh Shekhawat new Tourism Minister, Suresh Gopi becomes MoS, ET TravelWorld

Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s swearing in ceremony for a third straight term with induction of 71 ministers in the new cabinet, the government has announced portfolio allocation to MPs who took oath yesterday at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

BJP leader from Rajasthan, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has been appointed as the new Union Tourism & Culture Minister, replacing the outgoing G Kishan Reddy, who has been charge of Union Coal & Mines Ministry. He served as the Union Minister for Culture, Tourism, and DoNER (Development of North Eastern Region) since July 2021.

Born in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, in 1967, Shekhawat has been elected to the 16th, 17th, and now the 18th Lok Sabha from Jodhpur. He earlier served as the Union Jal Shakti Minister since May 2019. Shekhawat holds an MA (Philosophy) and M.Phil (Philosophy) from JNV University, Jodhpur.

Shekhawat was one of 30 cabinet ministers who took the oath of office, along with five ministers of state with independent charge and 30 ministers of state.

Soon after his appointment, Shekhawat expressed his gratitude on X (formerly Twitter), stating, “The visionary Prime Minister, honorable Shri @narendramodi ji, has honored me by giving me the important responsibility of the Union Ministry of Culture and Tourism. While performing my duties with utmost sincerity, I will make every possible effort to ensure gradual progress in the sector of culture and tourism in building a developed India. Many, many greetings and gratitude to my guide, honorable Modi ji!”

Along with Shekhawat, BJP’s lone MP from Kerala has also been inducted in the Modi 3.0 Cabinet with the Minister of State (MoS) for Tourism. The popular Malayalam actor who switched to politics has also been made the Minister of State in the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas.

In the Union Culture Ministry, Shekhawat will be accompanied by seasoned BJP MP from Gurugram, Rao Inderjit Singh, who has previously served in the Modi Government as the Minister of State for Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation and Ministry of Planning.Looking at other key portfolios, NDA ally TDP’s MP from Srikakulam, Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu has been appointed as the New Civil Aviation Minister of India. The 36-year old leader is the youngest Minister in the new Modi cabinet. Whereas, Ashwini Vaishnaw and Sarbananda Sonowal will continue from the last cabinet as Minister of Railways and Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways respectively.

Jyotiraditya M Scindia served as the Civil Aviation Minister in the last government. He has now been made the Minister of Communications; and Minister of Development of North Eastern Region.

The top four ministers in Modi’s cabinet—Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nirmala Sitharaman, and S Jaishankar—retain their respective portfolios of Home, Defence, Finance, and External Affairs, ensuring continuity and stability in key areas of governance.