For Gen Z Outreach, PM Modi Asked Ministers To Join Instagram. The Report Card

Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave a clear task to his Union Cabinet ministers a month ago: Get more active on Instagram, make short reels, and connect directly with the youth. He wanted them to move beyond traditional, text-heavy social media platforms and speak the language of the younger generation.

Exactly one month has passed since that appeal made on July 24, and the results are finally in.

Recently, the Modi government's overall social media performance (tracking Instagram, X, and Facebook from May 1 to August 15) was presented at a Cabinet meeting. This comes after the resignation of Dhamendra Pradhan, which shrunk the cabinet size from 30 to 29.

So, how did the ministers perform on Instagram? 

The PM Leads by Example

Before looking at the cabinet, it is important to look at the Prime Minister. PM Modi is the most-followed world leader on Instagram, with over 106.5 million (10.65 crore) followers.

He didn't just give advice; he led from the front. Between July 23 and July 31, he posted five selfie-style Instagram reels. These alone crossed a massive, combined total of over 1.2 billion (120 crore) views, marking a big change in how he connects online.

Over the last month, PM Modi maintained an average of one post a day -- which added up to 31 posts. During this time, he added 31 lakh new followers -- a number bigger than all his cabinet ministers added to their accounts.

Did the Cabinet Follow the PM's Advice?

The short answer is: Yes.

Data shows that 97 per cent of the cabinet -- 28 out of 29 ministers -- increased their Instagram activity. The only exception was Rajiv Ranjan Singh (Lalan Singh) from JD(U), whose activity did not increase.

Overall posting saw a solid 48 per cent jump. Between July 13 and July 26, the cabinet put out 797 posts. Between August 11 and August 24, this number went up to 1,179 posts. On average, every cabinet minister made 82 posts and gained around 80,993 followers in the last month.

Narendra Modi (Photo: PTI)
Photo Credit: (Photo: PTI)

The Follower Game: Top Performers vs. Slow Starters

When it comes to gaining new followers, the results were quite mixed across the cabinet. Some ministers managed to pull in a huge number of new followers, while others struggled to get noticed.

Leading the pack are Home Minister Amit Shah and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who saw massive follower growth. 

(Note: Dharmendra Pradhan, who resigned in July, also gained a healthy 1.26 lakh followers during this period).

On the other hand, not everyone saw such a big jump. A few ministers gained very few followers, and in one surprising case, followers actually dropped. Nitin Gadkari was the only cabinet minister to lose followers in the last month, the numbers dropping from 66.91 lakh to 66.65 lakh (a loss of 26,080 followers).

Here is a combined look at the top five ministers who gained the most followers, compared to the five who saw the lowest growth (or losses):

Quality Over Quantity: Does Posting More Help?

One might think that posting more content automatically brings more followers, but the data tells a different story.

Amit Shah and S Jaishankar gained the highest number of followers despite having a moderate number of posts (14 and 59 posts). On the other hand, Nitin Gadkari posted 70 times more than both Shah and Jaishankar yet he was the only minister to lose followers.

This clearly shows that follower growth depends more on a leader's public image, the quality of their content, and major national events, rather than just uploading a large number of posts.

Active but Unseen: High Posts, Low Growth

An interesting trend was seen with ministers like Dr. Virendra Kumar and Giriraj Singh. They were the most active members of the cabinet, posting over 360 times each in just one month. However, despite all this hard work, their follower base remains small, and they gained very few new followers (23,413 and 7,158 respectively).

The Shift to Reels

Following PM Modi's advice, ministers have started using Instagram reels as a main tool for communication. A great example is the newly appointed Union Education Minister Pralhad Joshi, who actively used Instagram Reels to clearly explain the government's stand on important issues to the public.

Bigger Picture: Mission 2029 and the Gen Z Voter

Why is the government focusing so heavily on Instagram? The answer lies in the upcoming 2029 Lok Sabha elections.

According to data from NapoleonCat, India has approximately 55 crore Instagram users, making it the largest user base for the platform globally. Even more importantly, about 70-76% of these users are under 35 years old.

By the time the 2029 elections arrive, Generation Z (young people born between 1997 and 2012) will be the country's largest adult group. According to 2026 population projections, people aged 18-29 will make up nearly 29.2% of India's eligible voting population. Simply put, one in every three voters will belong to Gen Z, and their favorite social media platform is Instagram.

Furthermore, Instagram is fast becoming a key place for news. While traditional video platforms like YouTube (55 per cent) and WhatsApp (46 per cent) still lead the digital news space, a 2025 report showed that 37 per cent of Indians are now turning to Instagram for news. This is the fastest growth among all platforms, as younger audiences clearly prefer short-form videos and visual content over reading long articles.

For the Union Cabinet, mastering Instagram is no longer just about getting "likes." It is a necessary step to win the hearts and minds of India's future voters.

The Final Appendix: Overall Standings & Recent Activity

The complete picture of where the cabinet stands today gives the overall rankings. These final charts not only show the total followers of these ministers but also highlight how active they were in the last one month.

Who Rules the Grid? The Top 10 Most-Followed Cabinet Ministers

Along with their massive total reach, this graphic also shows exactly how many posts they uploaded in the last 30 days to keep their audience engaged.

The Silent Grid: The 10 Cabinet Ministers with the Fewest Followers

On the other side of the spectrum, these 10 cabinet ministers currently have the smallest total reach on Instagram. The graphic also displays their 1-month posting activity proving that simply uploading posts is not always enough to gain followers.