Modi Cabinet reshuffle: 43 ministers likely to take oath today; what to expect

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet reshuffle will be announced at 6 pm on Wednesday. This would be the first in his second term in the office.  
 
At least 43 ministers, new and old, from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies are likely to be inducted into the Union Cabinet.  
 
Ahead of the crucial meeting, ministerial probables met PM Modi at his residence. Those who met the prime minister comprised BJP's Jyotiraditya Scindia, Narayan Rane, Shobha Karandlaje, Shantanu Thakur, Sarbananda Sonowal, Ajay Bhatt, Bhupender Yadav, Sunita Duggal, Bharati Pawar, Meenakshi Lekhi, Kapil Patil, and Shantanu Thakur, LJP's Pashupati Paras, JD(U)'s R C P Singh, and Apna Dal's Anupriya Patel. 

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What to expect from PM Modi's mega cabinet reshuffle?  
 

• The new Union cabinet will likely have seven PHDs, seven civil servants, three MBAs, 13 lawyers, six doctors, five engineers, and 68 ministers with graduate degrees, sources told India Today. This exhibits the level of focus that has been placed on the educational qualifications of the new team Modi. 
• Sources further said a lot of effort has been made on making sure that marginalised communities get appropriate representation in the reshuffle.  
• The newly reshuffled cabinet will have 12 ministers from the Dalit community, according to sources. Each of these ministers hails from a different SC community. Two of the SC ministers will have full cabinet rank. 
• A record 27 OBC ministers from 19 backward caste communities are expected to be there in the new cabinet. 
• These communities comprise Kurmi, Koli, Yadavs, Jat, Darji, and Vokkaligas. Five members of the OBC community will have full cabinet rank. 
• There will be eight tribal ministers from seven ST communities and five ministers from the country's several minority communities, according to sources. 
• A minimum of 29 ministers will represent other communities, such as Brahmin, Patel, Kshatriya, Bhumihar, Maratha, Kayasth, Lingayat, and Reddy castes. 
• A total of 11 woman ministers are expected, comprising two with a cabinet rank. 
• The Centre has made a lot of effort to give the Modi 2.0 cabinet a young look, with 14 ministers below the age of 50, including six in the cabinet. Following the reshuffle, the average age of ministers in the Union Cabinet will be 58 years.

Also Read: PM Modi's Cabinet reshuffle at 6 PM on Wednesday; key developments