Defence Minister of India: The Defence Minister is a critical role in the Union Council of Ministers and is a high-level minister in the cabinet. This office holder serves as the President of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses and as Chancellor of the Defence Institute of Advanced Technology and the National Defence University.
The Ministry of Defence sets the guidelines and provisions necessary for the Armed Forces to fulfill their duties regarding national defence. The Ministry is led by the Defence Minister (Raksha Mantri) and includes several key departments:
- Department of Defence (DOD)
- Department of Defence Production (DDP)
- Department of Defence Research & Development (DDR&D)
- Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare
- Finance Division
List of Defence Ministers of India
The Minister of Defence is the leader of the Ministry of Defence and a senior minister in the Government of India. Below is the list of Defence Ministers of India from 1947 to 2025.
| S.No | Name of Defence Minister | From Date | 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 Fernandes | 19 March 1998 | 16 March 2001 |
| 31 | Jaswant Singh | 16 March 2001 | 21 October 2001 |
| 32 | George Fernandes | 21 October 2001 | 22 May 2004 |
| 33 | Pranab Mukherjee | 22 May 2004 | 26 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 |
For more details about the Defence Minister of India, including contact numbers and email addresses, visit the official Ministry of Defence website: Ministry of Defence.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Read more: Prime Ministers of India List From 1947 to 2025
