List of Defence Ministers of India from 1947 till now


The backbone of any nation is its defence. A strong military and Defence Ministry ensure the security of a country. The government of India is in charge of maintaining the country's robust defence capabilities, and the President serves as the supreme commander of all armed forces. The Defence Minister heads the Ministry of Defence. The Ministry of Defence is located in New Delhi.

List of Defence Ministers of India

Baldev Singh was the first Defence Minister of India and the post of Defence Minister has been served by many prominent leaders of India. Here is the list of Defence Ministers of India from 1947 to date.

  1. Baldev Singh: 15 August 1947-13 May 1952
  2. N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar: 13 May 1952-10 February 1953
  3. Jawaharlal Nehru: 10 February 1953-10 January 1955
  4. Kailash Nath Katju: 10 January 1955-30 January 1957
  5. Jawaharlal Nehru: 30 January 1957-17 April 1957
  6. V.K Krishna Menon: 17 April 1957-31 October 1962
  7. Jawaharlal Nehru: 31 October 1962-14 November 1962
  8. Yashwantrao Chavan: 14 November 1962-13 November 1966
  9. Swaran Singh: 13 November 1966-27 June 1970
  10. Jagjivan Ram: 27 June 1970-10 October 1974
  11. Swaran Singh: 10 October 1974-1 December 1975
  12. Indira Gandhi: 1 December 1975-20 December 1975
  13. Bansi Lal: 21 December 1975-24 March 1977
  14. Jagjivan Ram: 24 March 1977-28 July 1979
  15. Chidambaram Subramaniam: 28 July 1979-14 January 1980
  16. Indira Gandhi: 14 January 1980-15 January 1982
  17. Ramaswamy Venkataraman: 15 January 1982-2 August 1984
  18. Shankarrao Chavan: 2 August 1984-31 December 1984
  19. P.V Narasimha Rao: 1 January 1985-25 September 1985
  20. Rajiv Gandhi: 25 September 1985-24 January 1987
  21. Vishwanath Pratap Singh: 24 January 1987-12 April 1987
  22. K.C Pant: 13 April 1987-1 December 1989
  23. Vishwanath Pratap Singh: 2 December 1989-10 November 1990
  24. Chandra Shekhar: 10 November 1990-21 June 1991
  25. P.V Narasimha Rao: 21 June 1991-26 June 1991
  26. Sharad Pawar: 26 June 1991-6 March 1993
  27. P.V Narasimha Rao: 6 March 1993-16 May 1996
  28. Pramod Mahajan: 16 May 1996-1 June 1996
  29. Mulayam Singh Yadav: 1 June 1996-19 March 1998
  30. George Fernades: 19 March 1998-16 March 2001
  31. Jaswant Singh: 16 March 2001-21 October 2001
  32. George Fernades: 21 October 2001: 22 May 2004
  33. Pranab Mukherjee: 22 May 2004-6 October 2006
  34. A.K Antony: 26 October 2006-26 May 2014
  35. Arun Jaitley: 26 May 2014-9 November 2014
  36. Manohar Parrikar: 9 November 2014-13 March 2017
  37. Arun Jaitley: 13 March 2017-3 September 2017
  38. Nirmala Sitharaman: 3 September 2017-30 May 2019
  39. Rajnath Singh: 30 May 2019-Present

Roles and functions of Defence Minister of India

The Ministry of Defence receives a huge chunk of the budget among all federal departments in India and is primarily in charge of coordinating and directing all government agencies and functions that directly relate to national security and the Indian armed forces.

The Defence Ministry is responsible for framing policy directions on defence and security matters and communicating them to "Services Headquarters, Inter-Services Organizations, Production Establishments, and Research and Development Organizations".

The most delicate and significant administration area is national security, and the defence ministry works relentlessly to bring about peace and harmony in the country.

The Indian Armed Forces and Indian Coast Guard under the Ministry of Defence are primarily responsible for the territorial integrity of India.

Ministry of Defence with 2.92 million employers is the largest employer in the world.

Departments under Ministry of Defence in India

The Ministry of Defence has five departments:

Department of Defence (DoD)

Department of Military Affairs (DMA)

Department of Defence Production (DDP)

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare (DESW)

Defence Secretary and its role

The Defence Secretary heads the Department of Defence. He is responsible for coordinating the activities of the four departments in the Ministry of Defence.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about List of Defence Ministers of India

Who is the current Defence Minister of India?

Rajnath Singh is the current Defence Minister of India.

Who is in charge of the national defence?

Ministry of Defence

Who was India's first defence minister?

Baldev Singh Chokkar wsa the first Defence Minister of India.

Who was the first female defense minister of India?

Indira Gandhi

Who was the Defence Minister of India during the Indo-Pak 1971 war?

Jagjivan Ram

Who serves as the Chief of all armed forces in India?

The President of India is the chief of all armed forces in India.

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