Modi 2.0 Cabinet ticks boxes of caste, region & experience

NEW DELHI:  With a diverse mix of former civil servants, lawyers, doctors, MBAs and engineers, the Modi 2.0 Cabinet has struck a fine balance of caste, regional representation and experience.  A look at the expanded Cabinet shows ministers who have rich administrative experience 46 have worked in the Central government, four are former chief ministers and 18 are former ministers in states. 

It also has  a mix of experienced professionals three lawyers, six doctors, five engineers, seven civil servants, seven with research degrees and three with degrees in business. Seven of the Union ministers have a PhD degree, three MBA degree holders and 68 graduates.

With seven more inductees, the revamped Cabinet boasts of 11 women ministers representing nine states. 
Another feature is the presence of 14 ministers below the age of 50 in the new Cabinet which was announced on Wednesday evening. Post reshuffle, the average age of the Modi Cabinet has come down to 58 years. 

The reshuffle took place after a detailed performance evaluation of the ministers by the Prime Minister. In the new ministry, there are record 12 ministers belonging to the Scheduled Castes, who are from eight states Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu. 

Besides, 27 of the ministers are from Other Backward Classes, five of whom are in the Cabinet. These leaders are from across 15 states and 19 communities, including Yadav, Kurmi, Jat, Gurjar and Khandayat, among others.

There are a record eight ministers — three of them in the Cabinet — who belong to the Scheduled Tribes and come from Arunachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Assam. The new ministry also cuts across communities as there is one Muslim, one Sikh, one Christian and two Buddhist ministers.