Centre Reconstitutes NITI Aayog, Includes Union Ministers from NDA Allies

The Centre has reconstituted the NITI Aayog, the apex public policy think tank of the Union government, following changes in the council of ministers. Prime Minister Narendra Modi remains the chairperson, with economist Suman K Bery continuing as the vice-chairperson. The reconstituted NITI Aayog includes four full-time members and 15 Union Ministers, including those from BJP allies, serving as either ex-officio members or special invitees.

Leadership and Full-Time Members

• Chairperson: Prime Minister Narendra Modi
• Vice-Chairperson: Economist Suman K Bery

• Full-Time Members

  • VK Saraswat (Former ISRO DG and Scientist)
  • Ramesh Chand (Agricultural Economist)
  • Dr. VK Paul (Paediatrician)
  • Arvind Virmani (Noted Economist)

Ex-Officio Members from the Cabinet

• Rajnath Singh (Defence)
• Amit Shah (Home)
• Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Agriculture)
• Nirmala Sitharaman (Finance)

Special Invitees

• Nitin Gadkari (Road Transport and Highways)
• JP Nadda (Health)
• HD Kumaraswamy (Heavy Industries and Steel, from JD(S))
• Jitan Ram Manjhi (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, from HAM)
• Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh (Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, from JD(U))
• Virendra Kumar (Social Justice and Empowerment)
• Rammohan Naidu (Civil Aviation, from TDP)
• Jual Oram (Tribal Affairs)
• Annpurna Devi (Women and Child Development)
• Chirag Paswan (Food Processing Industries, from LJP(RV))
• Rao Inderjit Singh (Statistics and Programme Implementation)

Background

NITI Aayog, established in 2015, replaced the 65-year-old Planning Commission. This restructuring aims to incorporate a broader range of expertise and representation, including significant input from NDA allies.