Govt sets up Cabinet committees on security, economic and political affairs; allies included

The Modi government on Wednesday (July 3) constituted various Cabinet committees, including the country's highest decision-making bodies on security, economic, and political affairs.

The members of the Cabinet committees included Union ministers from the BJP and its NDA partners like Janata Dal (U), Telugu Desam Party, Janata Dal (S), Shiv Sena, and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas).

Security

According to an official notification, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) comprises Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

The CCS is the country's highest decision-making body on all issues related to security and strategic affairs.

Economic Affairs

Apart from PM Modi, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has Rajnath Singh, Shah, Sitharaman, Jaishankar, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and Heavy Industries and Steel Minister HD Kumaraswamy as its members.

Others in the committee are: Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, and Minister of Panchayati Raj and Fisheries Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh.

The committee discusses and takes decisions related to issues of economy and trade.

Political Affairs

The Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs comprises Modi, Rajnath Singh, Shah, Gadkari, Sitharaman, Goyal, Health Minister JP Nadda, Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Jitan Ram Manjhi, Ports and Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, Women and Child Development Minister Annpurna Devi, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, and Coal Minister G Kishan Reddy.

This body handles major political issues of the country.

Parliamentary Affairs

The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs comprises Rajnath Singh, Shah, Nadda, Sitharaman, Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Naidu, Rijiju, Social Justice Minister Virendra Kumar, Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram, and Minister of Jal Shakti CR Patil.

The special invitees in the committee are Union Minister of State for Law (Independent Charge) Arjun Ram Meghwal and Minister of State for Law L Murugan.

The committee takes decisions like convening parliamentary sessions, etc.

Appointments Committee

Like previous years, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet comprises only two members - Modi and Shah. This committee makes appointments in top bureaucratic, strategic, and security posts in the country.

Investment and Growth

The Cabinet Committee on Investment and Growth comprises PM Modi, Rajnath Singh, Shah, Gadkari, Sitharaman, Goyal, Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi, Textiles Minister Giriraj Singh, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, and Minister of Food Processing Industries Chirag Paswan.

Special invitees in the committee are Minister of State for Statistics Rao Inderjit Singh and Minister of Aayush Prataprao Jadhav.

This body handles all investments and growth-related issues.

Accommodation

The Cabinet Committee on Accommodation has Shah, Gadkari, Sitharaman, Goyal, and Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal as its members.

Union Minister of State for Personnel and PMO Jitendra Singh is a special invitee in the committee, which takes decisions related to accommodation of Union ministers, bureaucrats and senior functionaries of the government.

Skill, Employment and Livelihood

The Cabinet Committee on Skill, Employment and Livelihood comprises the PM, Rajnath Singh, Shah, Gadkari, Sitharaman, Vaishnaw, Pradhan, Yadav, Puri, Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, and Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya. Union Minister of State for Skill Development Jayant Choudhary is the special invitee in the committee, which handles issues related to skill, employment and livelihood.

(With agency inputs)