Four of the new ministers who joined PM Modi's government today
21 new ministers joined Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government in the first cabinet expansion on Sunday since the BJP-led NDA took power in May. The exercise gives greater representation to key states and also brings in a large number of fresh faces into the government.
Here are top 10 interesting facts about the new cabinet
Two of the new ministers are IIT graduates. Manohar Parrikar studied metallurgical engineering at IIT-Bombay and Jayant Sinha, the son of former finance minister Yashwant Sinha, is an IIT-Delhi alumnus.
Jayant Sinha, an investment fund manager and management consultant, also went to the Harvard Business School. He was part of the corporate world for 25 years before debuting as an MP this year.
Among the new ministers are two imports who joined the BJP this year - Birender Singh and Ram Kirpal Yadav. Birender Singh, who was with the Congress for over 40 years, joined the BJP in August, three months after the party's massive victory in national polls.
Ram Kirpal Yadav, a former leader of Lalu Prasad Yadav's RJD, was rewarded for defeating Mr Yadav's daughter Misa Bharati. Mr Yadav was one of Lalu Yadav's most trusted aides until he quit in a huff after being denied his preferred constituency.
Rajiv Pratap Rudy and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi have been sworn in as ministers of state - no change from their rank in the last BJP-led government 10 years ago under Atal Behari Vajpayee as prime minister.
Olympian shooter and former army officer Rajyavardhan Rathore has also joined as a minister of state. Mr Rathore, 44, won a silver medal in the 2004 Olympics; it was India's first individual medal in 100 years.
A new minister who is making waves is Vijay Sampla, who worked as a plumber in Saudi Arabia. He told reporters that when he received a call about joining the government, he doubted the caller. "If a tea seller's son can become prime minister, why can't a plumber become a minister?" he says.
The only woman to be included in Sunday's exercise is Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti. The saffron-robed 47-year-old was sworn in as a minister of state.
Members of the film fraternity are no strangers to ministerial jobs; quite a few actors have been in government over the years. This time, playback singer Babul Supriyo has joined as minister.
Another new minister is Yalamanchili Satyanarayana Chowdary, popularly known as Sujana Chowdary. He is an industrialist and one of the richest MPs with assets of about Rs 190 crore.
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