Nitin Gadkari will continue as the Minister for Road Transport and Highways for the third consecutive term under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Having held on to the same role in the last two governments, Gadkari would be the longest-serving road transport minister.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, under the central government, formulates and administers policies for road transport, national highways and transport research amid increasing the mobility and efficiency of the road transport system in the country.
The roads wing under the ministry deals with the development and maintenance of National Highways in the country while the transport wing deals with matters relating to road transport such as motor vehicle legislation and safety standards.
Gadkari had been very vocal about the adoption of alternative fuel vehicles, or low-emission transport such as electric, flex-fuel and hybrid vehicles in the country. A couple of months ago, he reportedly urged the finance minister to reduce the goods and service tax on hybrid vehicles to 12 percent from the current 28 percent.
The senior BJP leader contested and won from the Nagpur Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra with a margin of over 1.37 lakh votes. Ajay Tamta, the MP from Uttarakhand’s Almora constituency, has been appointed as the Minister of State in the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.