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Ministry overview | |
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Formed | July 1942 |
Jurisdiction | Government of India |
Headquarters | Transport Bhawan, 1, Parliament Street, New Delhi 28°37′9.58″N 77°12′37.29″E / 28.6193278°N 77.2103583°E |
Annual budget | ₹270,435 crore (US$34 billion) (2023-24 est.)[1] |
Minister responsible | |
Deputy Minister responsible | |
Ministry executives |
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Child agencies | |
Website | morth |
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) is a ministry of the Government of India, that is the apex body for formulation and administration of the rules, regulations and laws relating to road transport, transport research and in also to increase the mobility and efficiency of the road transport system in India. Through its officers of Central Engineering Services (Roads) cadre it is responsible for the development of National Highways of the country. Road transport is a critical infrastructure for economic development of the country. It influences the pace, structure and pattern of development. In India, roads are used to transport over 60 percent of the total goods and 85 percent of the passenger traffic. Hence, development of this sector is of paramount importance for India and accounts for a significant part in the budget.
The Department of War Transport was formed in July, 1942, by the bifurcation of the then Department of Communications into two Departments:[2]
The functions allocated to the Department of war Transport include Major Ports, Railways Priorities, utilization of road and water transport, Petrol rationing and Producer Gas. Broadly speaking, the functions of the War Transport Department were to coordinate the demands for transport in war time, Coastal Shipping and the administration and development of major ports. Later, the planning of export was undertaken as a corollary to the Departments control of transport priorities also.
There are two departments under it:
Following are the autonomous agencies, subordinate offices regional offices under the Director General.[3]
The ministry has following wings functioning under it:
The road wing of the MORTH is the backbone of the country's road network development programme. It is staffed by officers of the Central Engineering Services (Roads). It is headed by Director General (Road Development) and Special Secretary to the Government of India.[5]
The Road wing of MORTH is further divided into five Project Zones. Each Project zone is generally vested with responsibility of four to five states for National highway development and development of road network. These five project Zones are headed by five Additional Director Generals (ADG) of Central Engineering Services (Roads) cadre who are assisted by Zonal Chief Engineer of Headquarter and Regional Officers. Regional officers are posted on ground in their respective states for development and maintenance of National Highways through State PWDs.
Main responsibilities of the roads wing are:[6]
Main responsibilities of the transport wing are:[citation needed]
This zones are headed by two separate Chief Engineers of Central Engineering Services (Roads). Main responsibilities of this zone are:[citation needed]
This zones is headed by a Chief Engineers of Central Engineering Services (Roads). Main responsibilities of this zone is Preparation of standards/ rules / guidelines for NH development program and related activities.
Over years the ministry has passed several acts to maintain law and order in Road Transport in the country
India has one of the largest road networks of over 4.885 million km consisting of :[7]
Roads | Length |
---|---|
National Highways/Expressways | 1,32,500 km |
State Highways | 1,56,694 km |
Other Roads | 56,08,477 km |
Total | 58,97,671 km |
The total road length of India had grown more than 11 times in 60 years from 1951 to 2011; also the length of the surfaced roads had increased about 16 times over the same period. The connectivity in India has tremendously improved due to formation of new surface roads.[8]
For development of roads in the country the government has made an allocation of ₹19,423.88 crores under the Central Road Fund for 2013–2014 with the following breakup:[9]
Type | Grants |
---|---|
Grants to State Governments and UTs for State Roads | ₹2,659.91 crores |
Grants to SGs and UTs for inte-state connectivity and roads of national importance | ₹262.22 crores |
National Highways | ₹9,881.95 crores |
Rural Roads | ₹5,827.20 crores |
Railways | ₹1092.60 crores |
Total | ₹19,423.88 crores |
The government has provided various incentives for private and foreign investments in the roads sector. 100% FDI is allowed in the sectors of land transport to promote building of highway bridges, toll roads, and vehicular tunnels; services incidental to transport such as cargo handling is incidental to land transport; construction and maintenance of roads, bridges; and construction and maintenance of roads and highways offered on build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis, including collection of toll.
A 10-year tax exemption under Section 80 IA has been granted to the highway building projects to attract private investors. The ministry has also framed a ‘Special Accelerated Road Development Programme in North Eastern Region' for improving road connectivity to remote places in this region. The estimated cost of the proposal is US$2.53 billion. The Union Budget 2012–13 proposed an increase of allocation of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways by 14% to ₹25,360 crore (US$3.2 billion).
The World Bank has approved a US$975 million loan for developing the first phase of the eastern arm of the US$17.21 billion Dedicated Freight Corridor Project in India. The Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Ltd. has tied up with the Japanese Bank of Industrial Cooperation for US$14.56 billion funding as loan for the first phase and it is likely to be commissioned in 2016.[10]
The Prime Minister Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) is a scheme for development of rural roads in India. The Construction of Rural Roads Project (CRRP) is another initiative focused on rural development.
Ministry of Transport and NHAI has launched the green highways programme in 2016.[11][12][13][14]
Portrait | Minister (Birth-Death) Constituency |
Term of office | Political party | Ministry | Prime Minister | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
From | To | Period | ||||||
Minister of Transport | ||||||||
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John Mathai (1886–1959) |
15 August 1947 |
22 September 1948 |
1 year, 38 days | Indian National Congress | Nehru I | Jawaharlal Nehru | |
Minister of Transport and Railways | ||||||||
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N. Gopalaswamy Ayyangar (1882–1953) MP for Madras (Interim) |
22 September 1948 |
13 May 1952 |
3 years, 234 days | Indian National Congress | Nehru I | Jawaharlal Nehru | |
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Lal Bahadur Shastri (1904–1966) MP for Uttar Pradesh (Rajya Sabha) |
13 May 1952 |
7 December 1956 |
4 years, 208 days | Nehru II | |||
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Jagjivan Ram (1908–1986) MP for Shahabad South |
7 December 1956 |
17 April 1957 |
131 days | ||||
Ministers of Transport and Communications | ||||||||
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Lal Bahadur Shastri (1904–1966) MP for Allahabad |
17 April 1957 |
28 March 1958 |
345 days | Indian National Congress | Nehru III | Jawaharlal Nehru | |
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S. K. Patil (1898–1981) MP for Mumbai South |
29 March 1958 |
24 August 1959 |
1 year, 148 days | ||||
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P. Subbarayan (1889–1962) MP for Tiruchengode |
2 September 1959 |
10 April 1962 |
2 years, 220 days | ||||
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Jagjivan Ram (1908–1986) MP for Sasaram |
10 April 1962 |
31 August 1963 |
1 year, 143 days | Nehru IV | |||
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Raj Bahadur (1912–1990) MP for Bharatpur Minister of Shipping |
10 April 1962 |
1 September 1963 |
1 year, 144 days | ||||
Ministers of Transport | ||||||||
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Raj Bahadur (1912–1990) MP for Bharatpur Minister of Shipping |
1 September 1963 |
10 April 1964 |
222 days | Indian National Congress | Nehru IV | Jawaharlal Nehru | |
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Raj Bahadur (1912–1990) MP for Bharatpur |
10 April 1964 |
27 May 1964 |
1 year, 289 days | ||||
27 May 1964 |
9 June 1964 |
Nanda I | Gulzarilal Nanda (acting) | |||||
9 June 1964 |
11 January 1966 |
Shastri | Lal Bahadur Shastri | |||||
11 January 1966 |
24 January 1966 |
Nanda II | Gulzarilal Nanda (acting) | |||||
Ministers of Transport and Civil Aviation | ||||||||
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Neelam Sanjiva Reddy (1913–1996) MP for Andhra Pradesh (Rajya Sabha) |
24 January 1966 |
13 March 1967 |
1 year, 48 days | Indian National Congress | Indira I | Indira Gandhi | |
Minister of Shipping and Transport | ||||||||
V. K. R. V. Rao (1908–1991) MP for Bellary |
13 March 1967 |
14 February 1969 |
1 year, 338 days | Indian National Congress | Indira I | Indira Gandhi | ||
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Kotha Raghuramaiah (1912–1979) MP for Guntur |
14 February 1969 |
18 March 1971 |
3 years, 357 days | ||||
18 March 1971 |
5 February 1973 |
Indira II | ||||||
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Raj Bahadur (1912–1990) MP for Bharatpur |
5 February 1973 |
8 November 1973 |
276 days | ||||
Kamalapati Tripathi (1905–1990) MP for Uttar Pradesh (Rajya Sabha) |
8 November 1973 |
10 February 1975 |
1 year, 94 days | |||||
Uma Shankar Dikshit (1901–1991) MP for Uttar Pradesh (Rajya Sabha) |
10 February 1975 |
1 December 1975 |
294 days | |||||
Gurdial Singh Dhillon (1915–1992) MP for Tarn Taran |
1 December 1975 |
24 March 1977 |
1 year, 113 days | |||||
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Morarji Desai (1896–1995) MP for Surat (Prime Minister) |
24 March 1977 |
7 June 1977 |
75 days | Janata Party | Desai | Morarji Desai | |
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Jagjivan Ram (1908–1986) MP for Sasaram (Deputy Prime Minister) |
7 June 1977 |
17 June 1977 |
10 days | ||||
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Morarji Desai (1896–1995) MP for Surat (Prime Minister) |
17 June 1977 |
14 August 1977 |
58 days | ||||
Chand Ram (1923–2015) MP for Sirsa (MoS, I/C) |
14 August 1977 |
28 July 1979 |
1 year, 348 days | |||||
Janeshwar Mishra (1933–2010) MP for Allahabad (MoS, I/C) |
30 July 1979 |
14 January 1980 |
168 days | Janata Party (Secular) | Charan Singh | Charan Singh | ||
Anant Sharma (1919–1988) MP for Bihar (Rajya Sabha) |
14 January 1980 |
19 October 1980 |
279 days | Indian National Congress | Indira III | Indira Gandhi | ||
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Veerendra Patil (1924–1997) MP for Bagalkot |
19 October 1980 |
2 September 1982 |
1 year, 318 days | ||||
C. M. Stephen (1918–1984) MP for Gulbarga |
2 September 1982 |
2 February 1983 |
153 days | |||||
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Kotla Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy (1920–2001) MP for Kurnool |
2 February 1983 |
7 September 1984 |
1 year, 218 days | ||||
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Veerendra Patil (1924–1997) MP for Bagalkot |
7 September 1984 |
31 October 1984 |
54 days | ||||
4 November 1984 |
31 December 1984 |
57 days | Rajiv I | Rajiv Gandhi | ||||
Ziaur Rahman Ansari (1925–1992) MP for Unnao (MoS, I/C) |
31 December 1984 |
25 September 1985 |
268 days | Rajiv II | ||||
Minister of Transport | ||||||||
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Bansi Lal (1927–2006) MP for Bhiwani |
25 September 1985 |
4 June 1986 |
252 days | Indian National Congress | Rajiv II | Rajiv Gandhi | |
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Rajiv Gandhi (1944–1991) MP for Amethi (Prime Minister) |
4 June 1986 |
24 June 1986 |
20 days | ||||
Mohsina Kidwai (born 1932) MP for Meerut |
24 June 1986 |
22 October 1986 |
120 days | |||||
Minister of Surface Transport | ||||||||
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Rajesh Pilot (1945–2000) MP for Dausa (MoS, I/C) |
22 October 1986 |
2 December 1989 |
3 years, 41 days | Indian National Congress | Rajiv II | Rajiv Gandhi | |
K. P. Unnikrishnan (born 1936) MP for Vatakara |
6 December 1989 |
10 November 1990 |
339 days | Janata Dal | Vishwanath | V. P. Singh | ||
Manubhai Kotadia (1936–2003) MP for Amreli |
21 November 1990 |
26 April 1991 |
156 days | Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) | Chandra Shekhar | Chandra Shekhar | ||
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Chandra Shekhar (1927–2007) MP for Ballia (Prime Minister) |
26 April 1991 |
21 June 1991 |
56 days | ||||
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Jagdish Tytler (born 1944) MP for Delhi Sadar (MoS, I/C) |
21 June 1991 |
15 September 1995 |
4 years, 86 days | Indian National Congress | Rao | P. V. Narasimha Rao | |
M. Rajasekara Murthy (1922–2010) MP for Mysore (MoS, I/C) |
15 September 1995 |
16 May 1996 |
244 days | |||||
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Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1924–2018) MP for Lucknow (Prime Minister) |
16 May 1996 |
1 June 1996 |
16 days | Bharatiya Janata Party | Vajpayee I | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | |
T. G. Venkatraman (1931–2013) MP for Tindivanam |
1 June 1996 |
21 April 1997 |
324 days | Janata Dal | Deve Gowda | H. D. Deve Gowda | ||
21 April 1997 |
19 March 1998 |
Gujral | Inder Kumar Gujral | |||||
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Sedapatti Muthiah (1945–2022) MP for Periyakulam |
19 March 1998 |
8 April 1998 |
20 days | All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam | Vajpayee II | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | |
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M. Thambidurai (born 1947) MP for Karur |
8 April 1998 |
8 April 1999 |
1 year, 0 days | ||||
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Nitish Kumar (born 1951) MP for Barh |
8 April 1999 |
5 August 1999 |
119 days | Samata Party | |||
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Jaswant Singh (1938–2020) MP for Rajasthan (Rajya Sabha) |
5 August 1999 |
13 October 1999 |
69 days | Bharatiya Janata Party | |||
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Nitish Kumar (born 1951) MP for Barh |
13 October 1999 |
22 November 1999 |
40 days | Samata Party | Vajpayee III | ||
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Rajnath Singh (born 1951) MP for Uttar Pradesh (Rajya Sabha) |
22 November 1999 |
25 October 2000 |
338 days | Bharatiya Janata Party | |||
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Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1924–2018) MP for Lucknow (Prime Minister) |
25 October 2000 |
7 November 2000 |
13 days | ||||
Minister of Road Transport and Highways | ||||||||
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Major General (Retd.) B. C. Khanduri AVSM (born 1934) MP for Garhwal (MoS, I/C until 24 May 2003) |
7 November 2000 |
22 May 2004 |
3 years, 197 days | Bharatiya Janata Party | Vajpayee III | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | |
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T. R. Baalu (born 1941) MP for Chennai South |
23 May 2004 |
22 May 2009 |
4 years, 364 days | Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam | Manmohan I | Manmohan Singh | |
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Kamal Nath (born 1946) MP for Chhindwara |
29 May 2009 |
19 January 2011 |
1 year, 235 days | Indian National Congress | Manmohan II | ||
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C. P. Joshi (born 1950) MP for Bhilwara |
19 January 2011 |
15 June 2013 |
2 years, 147 days | ||||
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Manmohan Singh (born 1932) MP for Assam (Rajya Sabha) (Prime Minister) |
15 June 2013 |
17 June 2013 |
2 days | ||||
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Oscar Fernandes (1941–2021) MP for Karnataka (Rajya Sabha) |
17 June 2013 |
26 May 2014 |
343 days | ||||
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Nitin Gadkari (born 1957) MP for Nagpur |
27 May 2014 |
30 May 2019 |
9 years, 88 days | Bharatiya Janata Party | Modi I | Narendra Modi | |
31 May 2019 |
Incumbent | Modi II |
Portrait | Minister (Birth-Death) Constituency |
Term of office | Political party | Ministry | Prime Minister | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
From | To | Period | ||||||
Minister of State for Transport and Railways | ||||||||
K. Santhanam (1895–1980) MP for Madras (Constituent Assembly) |
1 October 1948 |
29 May 1952 |
3 years, 241 days | Indian National Congress | Nehru I | Jawaharlal Nehru | ||
Minister of State for Transport and Communications | ||||||||
Humayun Kabir (1906–1969) MP for West Bengal (Rajya Sabha) |
17 April 1957 |
10 April 1958 |
358 days | Indian National Congress | Nehru III | Jawaharlal Nehru | ||
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Raj Bahadur (1912–1990) MP for Bharatpur |
17 April 1957 |
10 April 1962 |
4 years, 358 days | ||||
Minister of State for Transport and Civil Aviation | ||||||||
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C. M. Poonacha (1910–1990) MP for Mysore (Rajya Sabha) |
24 January 1966 |
13 March 1967 |
1 year, 48 days | Indian National Congress | Indira I | Indira Gandhi | |
Minister of State for Shipping and Transport | ||||||||
Om Mehta (1927–1995) MP for Jammu and Kashmir (Rajya Sabha) |
2 May 1971 |
5 February 1973 |
1 year, 279 days | Indian National Congress | Indira II | Indira Gandhi | ||
Mansinhji Bhasaheb Rana MP for Broach |
5 February 1973 |
11 January 1974 |
340 days | |||||
H. M. Trivedi MP for Gujarat (Rajya Sabha) |
17 October 1974 |
24 March 1977 |
2 years, 158 days | |||||
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Buta Singh (1934–2021) MP for Ropar |
8 June 1980 |
15 January 1982 |
1 year, 221 days | Indira III | Indira Gandhi | ||
Sitaram Kesri (1919–2000) MP for Bihar (Rajya Sabha) |
15 January 1982 |
29 January 1983 |
1 year, 14 days | |||||
Ziaur Rahman Ansari (1925–1992) MP for Unnao |
29 January 1983 |
31 October 1984 |
54 days | |||||
4 November 1984 |
31 December 1984 |
57 days | Rajiv I | Rajiv Gandhi | ||||
Minister of State for Transport | ||||||||
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Madhavrao Scindia (1945–2001) MP for Gwalior (Railways) |
25 September 1985 |
22 October 1986 |
1 year, 27 days | Indian National Congress | Rajiv II | Rajiv Gandhi | |
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Rajesh Pilot (1945–2000) MP for Dausa (Surface Transport) | |||||||
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Jagdish Tytler (born 1944) MP for Delhi Sadar (Civil Aviation) | |||||||
Minister of State for Surface Transport | ||||||||
Debendra Pradhan (born 1941) MP for Deogarh |
19 March 1998 |
13 October 1999 |
2 years, 69 days | Bharatiya Janata Party | Vajpayee II | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | ||
13 October 1999 |
27 May 2000 |
Vajpayee III | ||||||
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Hukmdev Narayan Yadav (born 1939) MP for Madhubani |
27 May 2000 |
2 November 2001 |
1 year, 159 days | ||||
Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways | ||||||||
Shripad Naik (born 1952) MP for Panaji |
24 May 2003 |
8 September 2003 |
107 days | Bharatiya Janata Party | Vajpayee III | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | ||
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Pon Radhakrishnan (born 1952) MP for Kanniyakumari |
8 September 2003 |
22 May 2004 |
257 days | ||||
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K. H. Muniyappa (born 1948) MP for Kolar |
23 May 2004 |
22 May 2009 |
4 years, 364 days | Indian National Congress | Manmohan I | Manmohan Singh | |
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Mahadeo Singh Khandela (born 1943) MP for Sikar |
28 May 2009 |
27 October 2012 |
3 years, 152 days | Manmohan II | |||
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R. P. N. Singh (born 1964) MP for Kushi Nagar |
28 May 2009 |
19 January 2011 |
1 year, 236 days | ||||
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Jitin Prasada (born 1973) MP for Dhaurahra |
19 January 2011 |
28 October 2012 |
1 year, 283 days | ||||
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Tushar Amarsinh Chaudhary (born 1965) MP for Bardoli |
19 January 2011 |
26 May 2014 |
3 years, 127 days | ||||
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Sarve Satyanarayana (born 1954) MP for Malkajgiri |
28 October 2012 |
26 May 2014 |
1 year, 149 days | ||||
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Krishan Pal Gurjar (born 1957) MP for Faridabad |
26 May 2014 |
9 November 2014 |
167 days | Bharatiya Janata Party | Modi I | Narendra Modi | |
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Pon Radhakrishnan (born 1952) MP for Kanniyakumari |
9 November 2014 |
3 September 2017 |
2 years, 298 days | ||||
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Mansukh Mandaviya (born 1972) MP for Gujarat (Rajya Sabha) |
5 July 2016 |
30 May 2019 |
2 years, 329 days | ||||
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General V. K. Singh (Retd.) PVSM AVSM YSM ADC (born 1950) MP for Ghaziabad |
31 May 2019 |
Incumbent | 4 years, 84 days | Modi II |
Portrait | Minister (Birth-Death) Constituency |
Term of office | Political party | Ministry | Prime Minister | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
From | To | Period | ||||||
Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications | ||||||||
Mohiuddin Ahmed (1898–?) MP for Secunderabad (Civil Aviation) |
2 April 1958 |
10 April 1962 |
4 years, 8 days | Indian National Congress | Nehru III | Jawaharlal Nehru | ||
Mohiuddin Ahmed (1898–?) MP for Secunderabad |
16 April 1962 |
1 September 1963 |
1 year, 138 days | Nehru IV | ||||
Bijoy Chandra Bhagavati (1905–1997) MP for Tezpur |
8 May 1962 |
1 September 1963 |
1 year, 116 days | |||||
Deputy Minister of Transport | ||||||||
Mohiuddin Ahmed (1898–?) MP for Secunderabad |
1 September 1963 |
27 May 1964 |
2 years, 126 days | Indian National Congress | Nehru IV | Jawaharlal Nehru | ||
27 May 1964 |
9 June 1964 |
Nanda I | Gulzarilal Nanda (acting) | |||||
15 June 1964 |
5 January 1966 |
Shastri | Lal Bahadur Shastri | |||||
Deputy Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation | ||||||||
Jahanara Jaipal Singh (1923–2004) MP for Bihar (Rajya Sabha) |
15 February 1966 |
13 March 1967 |
1 year, 26 days | Indian National Congress | Indira I | Indira Gandhi | ||
Deputy Minister of Shipping and Transport | ||||||||
Bhakt Darshan (1912–1991) MP for Garhwal |
18 March 1967 |
18 February 1969 |
1 year, 337 days | Indian National Congress | Indira I | Indira Gandhi | ||
Sardar Iqbal Singh (1923–1988) MP for Fazilka |
14 February 1969 |
18 March 1971 |
2 years, 32 days | |||||
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Pranab Mukherjee (1935–2020) MP for West Bengal (Rajya Sabha) |
11 January 1974 |
10 October 1974 |
272 days | Indira II | |||
Chaudhary Dalbir Singh (1926–1987) MP for Sirsa |
1 December 1975 |
24 March 1977 |
1 year, 113 days | |||||
Deputy Minister of Surface Transport | ||||||||
P. Namgyal (1937–2020) MP for Ladakh |
15 February 1988 |
4 July 1989 |
1 year, 139 days | Indian National Congress | Rao | P. V. Narasimha Rao | ||
Position not in use since 4 July 1989 |