NEW DELHI: Pralhad Joshi on Sunday took charge as the new Union Education Minister at the Kartavya Bhavan in New Delhi.
Joshi chaired a review meeting of the Education Ministry to assess the implementation of various schemes and initiatives.
Minister of State for Education Jayant Chaudhary attended the meeting, along with former Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi, School Education and Literacy Secretary TK Anil Kumar, and other senior ministry officials.
Joshi has been given additional responsibility of the education ministry besides his charge of the Union Ministries of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, and New and Renewable Energy.
After being appointed as Union Education Minister, Pralhad Joshi on Saturday said he accepted the new responsibility "with a sense of duty and humility" and pledged to carry forward the government's education reforms under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.
A senior leader with a long association with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Joshi is regarded as one of the most experienced members of the Modi Cabinet. He has represented Karnataka’s Dharwad Lok Sabha constituency continuously since 2004, winning five successive parliamentary elections. Over the years, he has also served as Union Minister for Coal, Mines and Parliamentary Affairs.
Joshi was appointed education minister after Dharmendra Pradhan resigned from the post on Saturday.
Pradhan resigned from his post on Saturday following the Cockroach Janta Party-led student protests across the country, demanding his ouster over the NEET paper leak controversy.
In his resignation letter, Pradhan said it was not a matter of "individual prestige" for him, and that he was disturbed to see the series of events that unfolded over the last 10 days.