‘This is a new subject for me’: Pralhad Joshi takes charge as education minister

Pralhad Joshi said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given him “this huge responsibility based on trust and belief”

Published on: Jul 26, 2026, 16:19:22 IST

By Sanjay Maurya, New Delhi

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Union minister Pralhad Joshi on Sunday took additional charge of the education ministry at Kartavya Bhavan.

Union Minister Pralhad Joshi during a meeting as he takes charge as education minister, in New Delhi. (PTI)

He chaired a meeting where he reviewed the implementation of various schemes and other initiatives of the department of school education and department of higher education, officials said.

Joshi said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given him “this huge responsibility based on trust and belief.” He said he was in Karnataka on Saturday night and came to Delhi on Sunday morning and took charge at Kartavya Bhawan.

“I am reviewing all the details here and the decisions that need to be taken. I have been gathering information and trying to understand the functioning of the entire ministry. We had continuous meetings today. This is a new subject for me. I have taken charge today and held detailed discussions with the senior officers. It is a very big department, so I will speak to you in detail after I have understood it completely,” he said.

Union minister of state of education Jayant Chaudhary along with higher education secretary Vineet Joshi, new school education secretary TK Anil Kumar and other senior officials of the ministry attended the review meeting.

According to a July 23 government order, Joshi will be replaced by IAS Naresh Pal Gangwar on August 1 as former will be replacing IAS Vivek Bhardwaj as secretary of ministry of panchayati raj upon Bhardwaj’s superannuation on July 31.

A senior official who briefed the newly appointed education minister Joshi during the meeting, said that officials provided information about various bureaus under both the departments of the ministry.

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“It was an introductory meeting soon after he took charge. We briefed him about ongoing initiatives of the ministry and major schemes driving the implementation of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. He took charge on Sunday as he will have to attend the Parliament from Monday onwards,” the official said, requesting anonymity.

Joshi, who currently serves as the Union minister for consumer affairs, food and public distribution and new and renewable energy, has been given the additional charge of the education ministry after President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday accepted the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan as education minister.

Also Read:From the first sit-in to the final breakthrough: A blow-by-blow account of CJP’s Jantar Mantar protests

Pradhan’s resignation came after 36-days long Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)-led student protests at Jantar Mantar in Delhi over the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Undergraduate (NEET-UG) paper leak and other alleged exam irregularities. Hours after this announcement, the CJP and the government held a joint presser, in which it was announced that the Abhijeet Dipke-led outfit was ending its protest because the Centre had agreed to all its demands.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sanjay Maurya
Sanjay Maurya is a Principal Correspondent with Hindustan Times, where he covers education, with a focus on school and higher education, competitive examinations, education policy and governance. Working as part of the National Bureau, he is based in New Delhi and reports on the Ministry of Education and covers various statutory bodies like UGC, AICTE and NCTE and autonomous bodies like CBSE and NCERT. His reporting also tracks the implementation of key government reforms and policies from school education to higher education including in IITs, NITs, IIMs, central and state universities, and their impact on students and educational institutions. His reporting on the irregularities and rushed implementation of CBSE's On-Screen Marking (OSM) system for evaluation of Class 12 board exams 2026, triggered administrative action, leading to the transfer of the board's two senior-most officials and the constitution of a committee to probe alleged irregularities in procurement process of the system. He joined Hindustan Times in December 2024. Prior to that, he had a three-year stint at Careers360, where he reported on school and higher education, entrance examinations, admissions, rankings and various education policies involving universities and professional education bodies. Over the years, Maurya has reported extensively on major developments in India's education sector, including the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, reforms in the National Testing Agency (NTA) following the NEET-UG 2024 controversy, changes in school education, higher education regulation, and the evolution of entrance examinations such as NEET, JEE and CUET. He regularly produces data-driven and explanatory stories based on government documents, parliamentary proceedings, court records and official data. His focus remains on helping readers understand how education policies and institutional decisions affect millions of students, teachers and educational institutions across the country.Read More

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