List of Education Ministers of India
List of all Education Ministers of India from 1947 to 2026, with their party, dates, and total time in office.
Ministry of Education (Shastri Bhavan), New Delhi
1947–2026
Longest Serving Education Minister
Maulana Azad
10 years, 171 days (1947–1958)
First Education Minister
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
Pioneered IITs, UGC, and IISc
Total Ministers
32 Leaders
Including HRD & Education portfolios
| # | Minister | Party | From | To | Duration | Constituency | House |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 |
MA
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
|
Indian National Congress | 15 Aug 1947 | 02 Feb 1958 | 10 yrs, 171 days | Rampur, Uttar Pradesh | Lok Sabha |
| #2 |
KS
K. L. Shrimali
|
Indian National Congress | 13 Mar 1958 | 31 Aug 1963 | 5 yrs, 171 days | Rajasthan | Rajya Sabha |
| #3 |
HK
Humayun Kabir
|
Indian National Congress | 01 Sep 1963 | 21 Nov 1963 | 81 days | West Bengal | Rajya Sabha |
| #4 |
MC
M. C. Chagla
|
Indian National Congress | 21 Nov 1963 | 13 Nov 1966 | 2 yrs, 357 days | Maharashtra | Rajya Sabha |
| #5 |
FA
Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed
|
Indian National Congress | 14 Nov 1966 | 13 Mar 1967 | 119 days | Barpeta, Assam | Lok Sabha |
| #6 |
TS
Triguna Sen
|
Indian National Congress | 16 Mar 1967 | 14 Feb 1969 | 1 yr, 335 days | Tripura | Rajya Sabha |
| #7 |
VR
V. K. R. V. Rao
|
Indian National Congress | 14 Feb 1969 | 18 Mar 1971 | 2 yrs, 32 days | Bellary, Karnataka | Lok Sabha |
| #8 |
SR
Siddhartha Shankar Ray
|
Indian National Congress | 18 Mar 1971 | 20 Mar 1972 | 1 yr, 2 days | Raiganj, West Bengal | Lok Sabha |
| #9 |
NH
S. Nurul Hasan
|
Indian National Congress | 24 Mar 1972 | 24 Mar 1977 | 5 yrs | Uttar Pradesh | Rajya Sabha |
| #10 |
PC
P. C. Chunder
|
Janata Party | 26 Mar 1977 | 28 Jul 1979 | 2 yrs, 124 days | Calcutta North East, WB | Lok Sabha |
| #11 |
KS
Karan Singh
|
Janata Party (Secular) | 30 Jul 1979 | 14 Jan 1980 | 168 days | Udhampur, Jammu & Kashmir | Lok Sabha |
| #12 |
BS
B. Shankaranand
|
Indian National Congress (I) | 14 Jan 1980 | 19 Oct 1980 | 279 days | Chikkodi, Karnataka | Lok Sabha |
| #13 |
SC
S. B. Chavan
|
Indian National Congress (I) | 19 Oct 1980 | 08 Aug 1981 | 293 days | Nanded, Maharashtra | Lok Sabha |
| #14 |
SK
Sheila Kaul
|
Indian National Congress (I) | 08 Aug 1981 | 31 Dec 1984 | 3 yrs, 145 days | Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh | Lok Sabha |
| #15 |
KP
K. C. Pant
|
Indian National Congress | 31 Dec 1984 | 25 Sep 1985 | 268 days | New Delhi | Lok Sabha |
| #16 |
PV
P. V. Narasimha Rao 1st HRD Minister
|
Indian National Congress | 25 Sep 1985 | 25 Jun 1988 | 2 yrs, 274 days | Ramtek, Maharashtra | Lok Sabha |
| #17 |
SS
P. Shiv Shankar
|
Indian National Congress | 25 Jun 1988 | 02 Dec 1989 | 1 yr, 160 days | Gujarat | Rajya Sabha |
| #18 |
VP
V. P. Singh
|
Janata Dal | 02 Dec 1989 | 10 Nov 1990 | 343 days | Fatehpur, Uttar Pradesh | Lok Sabha |
| #19 |
RP
Rajmangal Pande
|
Samajwadi Janata Party | 21 Nov 1990 | 21 Jun 1991 | 212 days | Deoria, Uttar Pradesh | Lok Sabha |
| #20 |
AS
Arjun Singh
|
Indian National Congress | 23 Jun 1991 | 24 Dec 1994 | 3 yrs, 184 days | Satna, Madhya Pradesh | Lok Sabha |
| #21 |
PV
P. V. Narasimha Rao 2nd Term
|
Indian National Congress | 25 Dec 1994 | 09 Feb 1995 | 46 days | Nandyal, Andhra Pradesh | Lok Sabha |
| #22 |
MS
Madhavrao Scindia
|
Indian National Congress | 10 Feb 1995 | 17 Jan 1996 | 341 days | Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh | Lok Sabha |
| #23 |
ABV
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 16 May 1996 | 01 Jun 1996 | 16 days | Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh | Lok Sabha |
| #24 |
SB
S. R. Bommai
|
Janata Dal | 05 Jun 1996 | 19 Mar 1998 | 1 yr, 287 days | Karnataka | Rajya Sabha |
| #25 |
MJ
Murli Manohar Joshi
|
Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) | 19 Mar 1998 | 22 May 2004 | 6 yrs, 64 days | Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh | Lok Sabha |
| #26 |
AS
Arjun Singh 2nd Term
|
Indian National Congress (UPA) | 22 May 2004 | 22 May 2009 | 5 yrs | Madhya Pradesh | Rajya Sabha |
| #27 |
KS
Kapil Sibal
|
Indian National Congress (UPA) | 29 May 2009 | 28 Oct 2012 | 3 yrs, 152 days | Chandni Chowk, New Delhi | Lok Sabha |
| #28 |
PR
M. M. Pallam Raju
|
Indian National Congress (UPA) | 28 Oct 2012 | 26 May 2014 | 1 yr, 210 days | Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh | Lok Sabha |
| #29 |
SI
Smriti Irani
|
Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) | 26 May 2014 | 05 Jul 2016 | 2 yrs, 40 days | Gujarat | Rajya Sabha |
| #30 |
PJ
Prakash Javadekar
|
Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) | 05 Jul 2016 | 31 May 2019 | 2 yrs, 330 days | Madhya Pradesh | Rajya Sabha |
| #31 |
RP
Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’
|
Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) | 31 May 2019 | 07 Jul 2021 | 2 yrs, 37 days | Haridwar, Uttarakhand | Lok Sabha |
| #32 |
DP
Dharmendra Pradhan Incumbent
|
Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) | 07 Jul 2021 | Incumbent | 5+ Years | Sambalpur, Odisha | Lok Sabha |
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who was the first Education Minister of independent India?
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad was the first Education Minister of India, serving from 15 August 1947 until 2 February 1958. His birthday on 11 November is celebrated as National Education Day.
Who is the current Education Minister of India?
Dharmendra Pradhan is the current Education Minister of India, taking office on 7 July 2021.
When was the ministry renamed to Ministry of Education?
Originally called Ministry of Education, it was renamed to Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) in 1985, and restored back to Ministry of Education in 2020 under the National Education Policy (NEP).
Who was the first HRD Minister of India?
P. V. Narasimha Rao was the first Minister of Human Resource Development in 1985 under Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
Who was the longest-serving Education Minister of India?
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad was the longest-serving Education Minister, serving for over 10 years from 1947 to 1958.