New Delhi, June 10: Senior BJP leader and newly elected Lok Sabha MP from Sambalpur in Odisha, Dharmendra Pradhan retained the Ministry of Education in the third term of the NDA government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Pradhan took oath as a Union Cabinet Minister of the Modi 3.0 Cabinet at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Sunday.

The BJP leader was appointed as the Union Education Minister in 2021 during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's second term from 2019-2024. He successfully implemented the New Education Policy.

Popularly known as the 'Ujjwala' man, Pradhan is credited with being the longest serving Union Minister for Petroleum And Natural Gas.

In 2012, Pradhan was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Bihar. When Narendra Modi swept to power in the 2014 general election, Pradhan was made the Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas with independent charge.

In a cabinet reshuffle in 2017, Pradhan was elevated to the Cabinet rank for the same ministry, with an additional charge of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. Pradhan again was made a Cabinet Minister in the second Modi government. In 2021, Pradhan was made the Union minister for Education and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship.

Notably, the 72-member Union Council of Ministers in the Modi 3.0 government includes 30 cabinet ministers and five ministers of state (independent charge).