Joshi will continue to handle 3 ministries.
New Delhi: Senior BJP leader Pralhad Joshi has sworn-in as the Union Education Minister following former minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation after taking moral responsibility for the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak incident. While taking the charge, he said, "The decision to take up the additional charge is made with a sense of duty and humility." Joshi also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for availing faith in him. In the speech, Joshi said he would also work hard to strengthen the education system in the country after Pradhan has implemented the National Education Policy (NEP).
Joshi will continue to handle 3 ministries, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, and New and Renewable Energy along with the Education Ministry.
Pralhad Joshi was born on 27 November 1962 in the Karnataka town of Bijapur (now known as Vijayapura). He completed his primary education from Railway School, Hubballi and finished secondary education from New English School, Hubballi.
According to his official parliamentary profile, he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree from Shri Kadasiddheshwar Arts College, Karnataka University, Dharwad, in 1983. He was also associated with the field of business before he joined full-time politics.
After winning the Dharwad seat in Karnataka in 2004, Pralhad Joshi entered the Lok Sabha and has since defended the seat in all the general elections making him a five year MP.
Joshi held the position of Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Coal and Mines from 2019 to 2024. He was given the ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and New Renewable Energy after the 2024 elections.
As New Renewable Energy Minister, Pralhad Joshi was in charge of National Green Hydrogen Mission, PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, PM-KUSUM Scheme and the expansion of India’s renewable energy capacity.
Pralhad Joshi and his family have declared a total value of assets ₹21.09 crore and total liabilities ₹8.01 crore in Pralhad Joshi’s 2024 Lok Sabha election affidavit.
The family’s movable assets amount to ₹8.97 crore with cash and bank deposits, fixed deposits, mutual funds, shares in companies, insurance policies, provident fund assets and jewellery. Pralhad Joshi alone holds ₹2.72 crore in movable assets, his wife Jyoti P. Joshi holds ₹5.93 crore and their daughter Ananya V. Joshi has movable assets worth ₹32.03 lakh.
The value of Immovable assets of the family comes to ₹12.11 crore and consists of residential properties in Hubballi and Bengaluru, agricultural land in Dharwad district and non-agricultural land in Karnataka. Joshi alone holds ₹11.24 crore worth of immovable assets and his wife holds assets worth ₹86.39 lakh.
According to the 2024 election affidavit, Pralhad Joshi has criminal cases filed against him, as per the election disclosure norms. Those cases are pending in the courts, and no case has been proved against him. For everyone contesting elections in India, the rules mandate that all the pending criminal cases should be disclosed, irrespective of the progress in the case.
Pralhad Joshi will assume the Education Ministry at a challenging time, as the government gears up to implement important reforms in the wake of the NEET fallout. The Centre has floated ideas such as increasing safeguards against paper leaks, reconstituting the National Testing Agency (NTA) and earmarking NEET as a computer-based test (CBT) from 2027. Implementation of the National Education Policy aside, restoring faith in the exam system of India will be one of the biggest challenges for the new Education Minister.
