All you need to know about the 19 new cabinet ministers

Seen as a second exercise by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in little more than two years since he took over in May 2014 saw a number a dalit and OBC leaders being given ministerial positions done apparently with an eye on assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand next year and Gujarat later.

Here’s the complete list of the 19 ministers inducted into PM Modi’s cabinet:

1) SS Ahluwalia, 65, Lok Sabha MP from Darjeeling

From being a minister in the P V Narasimha Rao Cabinet to a 'research scholar' for BJP on various key legislations, Ahluwalia has links cutting across party lines and is known to speak his mind. The Patna-based politician is known for taking stand which at times is contrary to the party's position. Read More

2) Ramesh Chandappa Jigjinagi, 64, Lok Sabha MP from Karnataka

3) Parshottam Rupala, 61, Rajya Sabha MP from Gujarat

4) MJ Akbar, 65, Rajya Sabha MP from Madhya Pradesh

M J Akbar's debut as a minister caps a remarkable political turnaround for the journalist and author who made a dashing foray into politics as a Congress MP in 1989, thanks to his proximity to the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, before a long spell in wilderness. Read More

5) Anil Madhav Dave, 59, Rajya Sabha MP from Madhya Pradesh

6) Vijay Goel, 62, Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan

Goel (62) was the president of Delhi BJP in 2013 and has been a three-time Lok Sabha member representing the Sadar and Chandni Chowk constituencies of Delhi. Read More

7) Rajen Gohain, 65, Lok Sabha MP from Assam

A four time BJP MP from Assam, but other-wise an unknown face, Rajen Gohain was on Tuesday sworn in as a Junior minister in the latest Cabinet reshuffle of the Narendra Modi government. Besides representing Nowgong constituency of the North-Eastern state since 1999, Gohain does not have a stellar performance record in the Lok Sabha as well. Read More

8) Mahendra Nath Pandey, 58, from Uttar Pradesh

One of the MPs with the highest attendance in parliament (97 percent), Pandey has also introduced a large number of private members bills. Educated at the Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, he has a doctorate in Hindi language. Read More

9) CR Chaudhary, 70, Lok Sabha MP from Rajasthan

The 70-year-old BJP leader has keen interests in rural development and took training in Rural Development in University of Birmingham at United Kingdom. Elected to parliament in 2014 for the first time, Chaudhary is Member, Committee on Subordinate Legislation, Member, Standing Committee on Human Resource Development and Member, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways and Shipping. Read More

10) PP Chaudhary, 63, LS MP from Rajasthan

P.P. Chaudhary (born 12 July 1953), a noted lawyer and presently  represents Pali constituency of Rajasthan in  16th Lok Sabha.  As BJP candidate in 2014 general elections, Chaudhary defeated his nearest rival with the margin of 4 lakh votes. Chaudhary at the age of eight had joined RSS  and associated with organisations activities during his studies. Read More

11) Ramdas Athawale, 56, Rajya Sabha MP from Maharashtra

Ramdas Athawale, known for his comic sense, is a prominent dalit leader from Maharashtra whose induction into the Modi government is part of BJP's endeavour to reach out to the politically crucial segment ahead of elections to five states including Uttar Pradesh. Read More

12) Subhash Ramrao Bhamre, 62, LS MP from Maharashtra

Subhash Ramarao Bhamre, represents Dhule constituency of Maharshtra in Lok Sabha and one of members who elected for the first time in the Parliament . A MBBS surgeon and MS and Super Specialisation in Cancer Surgery, Bhamre wrote a Research paper on "Breast Cancer" for International Cancer Conference at Hungary. Read More

13) Jaswant Sinh Bhabhor, 49, LS MP from Gujarat

14) Mansukh Mandaviya, 44, Rajya Sabha MP Gujarat

In a move aimed at further taking out the fizz out of the Patel Quota Stir, Mansukh L. Madaviya, a Narendra Modi loyalist from the Patel Community took oath on Tuesday. Relatively a fresh face, Madaviya’s entry into the Cabinet has been done with an eye on 2017 Gujarat polls. Read More

15) Faggan Singh Kulaste, 57, LS MP from Madhya Pradesh

Kulaste (57), a tribal leader from Madhya Pradesh, is a Post Graduate and LLB. He is a former teacher and social worker. He represents the Mandla constituency of Madhya Pradesh and was a junior minister in earlier Atal Bihari Vajpayee- led NDA government. Read More

16) Ajay Tamta, 43, LS MP from Uttarakhand

Keeping in mind Uttarakhand elections scheduled next year, Ajay Tamta, a dalit from Uttarakhand, was inducted in the NDA government as Minister of State. He is MP from Almora and representing Uttarakhand in the cabinet. Read More

17) Anupriya Singh Patel, 35, LS MP from Mirzapur (Uttar Pradesh)

In a climax akin to films, suave and articulate Apna Dal’s MP from Mirzapur Anupriya Singh Patel, took oath as the Minister of State in Narendra Modi’s government. The event, would not have gone down well by her mother and Apna Dal’s President Krishna Singh Patel, who had ousted her daughter for ‘anti-party activities’ in 2015. Read More

18) Krishna Raj, 49, LS MP from Shahjahanpur (UP)

Krishna Raj, represent dalit constituency of Shahjanpur of Uttar Pradesh in Lok Sabha. Masters of Arts, Krishna Raj was earlier elected two times to the state assembly in 1996 & 2007 from Mohamdi seat. Read More

19) Prakash Javadekar, 65, LS MP from Madhya Pradesh

Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar was Tuesday elevated to cabinet rank, a reward for bringing reforms in the green ministry which during UPA regime was projected as a road block ministry by the industry. He is a Rajya Sabha MP from Madhya Pradesh. Read More