Cabinet reshuffle brings talent, inclusion and reforms-orientation to the fore

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Earlier today, there were several major changes to the Union Council of Ministers. These changes have come at approximately the halfway mark of Modi 2.0 and have indicated the direction of future policy. With 43 ministers being sworn in today, here are 9 big takeaways from the cabinet expansion.

Adequate representation

The new cabinet is perhaps one of the most representative cabinets as it includes not just 39 people from marginal communities but more importantly, has representation from across several states. This includes North East which has featured on top of the priority list for the Union government as far as development projects are concerned. The new council has 11 women ministers, five ministers from the minority community, and eight ministers from ST category. It is evident that equitable representation in the government has been a key consideration while the formulation of the council of ministers.

Performance rewarded

It is not just adequate representation that was an important consideration as we see performance has been rewarded. Key examples of this are the elevation of key ministers of states such as Kiren Rijiju, Anurag Thakur, and Hardeep  Singh Puri – each of whom have performed exceptionally well in their respective roles over the last few years.

Young team for a young India

The new council of ministers is younger by 3 years with 14 ministers under 50 while several ministers under 40. This makes the new council one of the youngest councils of ministers. A welcome change as this too reflects the changing nature of Indian society – including the demographics. With a greater share of the younger population, making young ministers has important implications for policy choices, more so for those involving concerns regarding inter-generation equity, welfare, and distribution. A young team is also important as we witness a changing nature of complex challenges that have emerged ranging from climate change to dealing with issues related to the regulation of big-tech.

Outside expertise to help chart better policies

The new cabinet also brings in a lot of outside expertise. Be it in the form of induction of technologists, lawyers or doctors – there is a fair deal of experts who have been inducted in the council. The end objective is to bring in ministers with fair domain knowledge and administrative experience to ensure better policy formulation (and to some extent their implementation). Thus, the new council will only expand the knowledge base of the council and bring in a fresh perspective on a variety of issues. These could include the regulation of big-tech, data protection laws, and other multi-disciplinary issues.

Fast-tracking education reforms

Another important change was with regards to education where we saw a complete rejig of the ministry. This comes against the backdrop of the New Education Policy and the Covid-19 pandemic-induced school closures. The new reboot is a welcome step as there is a need to revisit our curriculum – and higher education, in general, to ensure we impart employable skills. The critical role of education in augmenting human productivity is well documented and thus, this major shift augers well for beginning a process of reforms in this sector.

IT gets a major reboot

The reboot of IT is not just limited to rejig of the ministry – although that too is an important part of it. However, the reboot began with the need to bring in modern data-protection laws, the regulatory regimes for big-tech and ensuring a system that preserves the competitive nature of open networks and online commerce. Thus, the overhaul of the ministry should be welcomed as it comes at a critical juncture. This will also have important implications for the ongoing tussle between the government and twitter regarding their compliance with the new IT rules.

An attempt to prepare healthcare systems for the future?

A surprise was regarding healthcare as we saw the healthcare minister resign. Many may attribute this to the handling of the pandemic but there are two key points here. First is that India managed the first wave exceptionally well and that in the second wave several East Asian countries have also struggled. In fact, in comparison, India has done decent when one considers all constraints such as a historically underfunded healthcare sector. However, it appears that the change is largely aimed at preparing a dynamic comprehensive healthcare system keeping in mind the large disparities with regards to healthcare infrastructure across the country.

Seasoned administrators to help in implementation

With several ex-babus joining the council of ministers, it is evident that the government is focused on improving implementation. This is important as with Covid, nearly half the term of the current government is over, and thus, it has to deliver on its promises within the next 2 and a half years. Induction of former bureaucrats has been successful in the past as we see with Hardeep Puri and S Jaishankar. Thus, the new council balances outside experts along with seasoned bureaucrats, which will yield rich dividends during the post-Covid years as we shift to issues of growth and development before the next elections.

Signal to the opposition – Talent acquisition

There is a signal to all the political parties – that the BJP is in a talent acquisition mode. That is, given the lack of talented administrators and political leaders in Indian politics, BJP is willing to absorb political leaders from other parties – and often even give them the top post as a chief minister, or a leader of Opposition, or even a cabinet berth. This is a welcome change as it should lead to political parties recognizing the need to retain talent and thereby bring in a shift towards meritocracy in key political appointments.

It is safe to say that the new cabinet represents the aspirations of a billion people. This is a team that now has to deliver on the expansive redistribution and growth agenda of the Prime Minister much like the first cabinet did during his previous tenure. The induction of talent, expertise and representation all auger well for achieving the governance targets. Therefore, this is perhaps a team that will redefine the speed, scale and scope of developmental work in India over the next few years.

(The writer is an economist and policy-researcher. Views expressed are personal)