Jitendra Singh (born 6 November 1956) is an Indian

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

and politician. He is the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for the

Ministry of Science and Technology A Science Ministry or Department of Science is a ministry or other government agency charged with science. The ministry is often headed by a Minister for Science. List of Ministries of Science Many countries have a Ministry of Science or Ministry ...

and Minister of state (Independent Charge) ministry of earth science and

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...

for Prime Minister's Office; Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions;

Department of Atomic Energy The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) (IAST: ''Paramāṇu Ūrjā Vibhāga'') is a department with headquarters in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. DAE was established in 1954 by a Presidential Order. DAE has been engaged in the development of nucl ...

and

Department of Space The Department of Space is an Indian government department responsible for administration of the Indian space program. It manages several agencies and institutes related to space exploration and space technologies. The Indian space program und ...

.For better synergy, maximum efficiency
. The Hindu (28 May 2014). Retrieved on 1 August 2014. He is a

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...

(BJP) national executive member and was the chief spokesperson for the union territory of

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

. He won the Udhampur seat in the Indian general election,

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

and

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

with highest ever margin of votes for the

16th Lok Sabha Members of the 16th Lok Sabha were elected during the 2014 Indian general election. The elections were conducted in 9 phases from 7 April 2014 to 12 May 2014 by the Election Commission of India. The results of the election were declared on 16 M ...

and

17th Lok Sabha The 17th Lok Sabha was formed by the members elected in the 2019 Indian general election. Elections, all across India, were conducted in seven phases from 11 April 2019 to 19 May 2019 by the Election Commission of India. Counting started offi ...

. He was a professor of diabetes and endocrinology, Life Patron, Research Society for Study of Diabetes in India (RSSDI); Founder Executive Member, Diabetes in Pregnancy Study India, a consultant, clinical practitioner, author of eight books, and a newspaper columnist. He is the ex-chairman for the National Scientific Committee Diabetes and the Research Society for the Study of Diabetes in India.

Early life

Singh was born on 6 November 1956 in

Jammu Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi Ri ...

, in the erstwhile

Indian state India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, with a total of 36 entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into districts and smaller administrative divisions. History Pre-indepen ...

into a

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Dogra The Dogras or Dogra people, are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group in India and Pakistan consisting of the Dogri language speakers. They live predominantly in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, and in adjoining areas of Punjab, Himachal ...

family to parents Rajinder Singh and Shanti Devi. His family belongs to Marmat area in

Doda district Doda is a district in the eastern part of Jammu Division in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The district consists of 18 tehsils viz. Thathri, Bhaderwah, Doda, Mohalla, Bhagwa, Assar, Bhalla, Gundna, Marmat, Kahara, G ...

. Jitendra is the eldest of three brothers.

Professional career

Besides being a doctor, Singh has also worked as a newspaper columnist. Initially he wrote for ''

Kashmir Times ''Kashmir Times'' is an Indian English language daily newspaper published from Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Ka ...

''. However, he was unhappy about how the newspaper covered events related to

Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...

. Subsequently, he switched to ''

Daily Excelsior The ''Daily Excelsior'' is an English-language newspaper published in Jammu, a city in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It was established by S. D. Rohmetra. The newspaper has been in publication since 1 January 1965. Its cu ...

'', which is the largest circulated newspaper of

. His weekly column 'Tales of Travesty' used to feature in the editorial section of the newspaper until his election to the Lok Sabha in 2014.

Political career

Formative years

In 2008, Singh was appointed spokesperson of the Shri Amarnathji Sangharsh Samiti, an umbrella organisation of right wing parties during the

Amarnath land transfer controversy On 26 May 2008, the government of India and the state Government of Jammu and Kashmir reached an agreement to transfer of forest land to the ''Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board'' (SASB) in the main Kashmir valley to set up temporary shelters and fa ...

. During his stint with the organisation, he took premature retirement as a professor of

endocrinology Endocrinology (from '' endocrine'' + '' -ology'') is a branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific secretions known as hormones. It is also concerned with the integration of developmental event ...

in the

Government Medical College, Jammu The Government Medical College, Jammu also known as GMC Jammu is a medical college located in Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir, India. It was established in 1973. The college and hospital are approved and recognized by the Medical Council of India ...

to join the

in 2012. However, the party refused to make him a candidate for the

2009 Indian general election 9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding . Evolution of the Arabic digit In the beginning, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bottom dot. The Kshatrapa, Andhra and ...

Parliamentary career

In March 2014, the party announced that Singh would contest the upcoming

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

from Udhampur constituency in his native Jammu. His primary competitor was

Ghulam Nabi Azad Ghulam Nabi Azad (born 7 March 1949) is an Indian politician who served as Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha between 2014 to 2021. He also served as the Chief Minister of erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir from 2005 to 2008. On 26 September ...

of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

party who was a former chief minister of the state. Singh was elected to the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past ...

after defeating Azad by a margin of 60,976 votes. Singh was polled votes while Azad was polled votes. On 27 May 2014, Singh was appointed

in the Prime Minister's Office, Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Minister of State for

and

. He also became the Union Minister of State (Independent charge) in the

and

Ministry of Earth Sciences The Ministry of Earth Sciences was formed on 29 January 2006 from a merger of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF), the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune ...

. In March 2019, the party renominated Singh as its candidate from the Udhampur constituency for the upcoming

. His main rival was

Vikramaditya Singh Vikramaditya Singh may refer to: * Vikramaditya Singh (Maharana) (1517–1534), Maharana of Mewar Kingdom from 1531–1534 * Vikramaditya Singh (politician, born 1964), Indian businessman and politician * Vikramaditya Singh (Himachal Pradesh politi ...

of the Congress party and supported by

Jammu and Kashmir National Conference The Jammu & Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) is a regional political party in the Indian union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Founded as the ''All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference'' by Sheikh Abdullah and Chaudhry Ghulam A ...

party. He is also the grandson of

Hari Singh Maharaja Sir Hari Singh (September 1895 – 26 April 1961) was the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir (princely state), Jammu and Kashmir. Hari Singh was the son of Amar Singh and Bhotiali Chib. In 1923, followi ...

, the last monarch of the former princely state. Jitendra Singh fought the election on his "development report card". Notable campaigners for him included Prime Minister

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from ...

, party president

Amit Shah Amit Anil Chandra Shah (born 22 October 1964) is an Indian politician currently serving as the Minister of Home Affairs since 2019 and the first Minister of Co-operation of India since 2021. He served as the President of the Bharatiya Janata P ...

Home Minister The Minister of Home Affairs (or simply, the Home Minister, short-form HM) is the head of the Ministry of Home Affairs of the Government of India. One of the senior-most officers in the Union Cabinet, the chief responsibility of the Home Minist ...

Rajnath Singh Rajnath Singh (; born 10 July 1951) is an Indian politician serving as the Defence Minister of India. He is currently the Deputy Leader of the House Lok Sabha. He is the former President of Bharatiya Janata Party. He has previously served as t ...

Ram Madhav Varanasi Ram Madhav (born 22 August 1964) is an Indian politician who served as the National General Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He was a member of the National Executive of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and has authored a few bo ...

and cricketer

Gautam Gambhir Gautam Gambhir (; born 14 October 1981) is an Indian politician and former cricketer, who has played all formats of the game. He is a current member of the Lok Sabha since 2019. He received the Padma Shri from the Government of India in 2019, th ...

. Jitendra Singh was re-elected to the Lok Sabha after defeating Vikramaditya Singh by approximately 350,000 votes. Jitendra Singh was polled 7,15,406 votes compared to his rival's 3,66,123 votes. On 31 May 2019, it was announced that Singh had retained his ministries in the

Second Modi ministry The Second Ministry of Narendra Modi is the Council of Ministers headed by Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi that was formed after the 2019 general election which was held in seven phases in 2019. The results of the election were announce ...

Minister of Science and Technology

As a minister of science and technology, Singh launched India's first indigenously made

research vessel A research vessel (RV or R/V) is a ship or boat designed, modified, or equipped to carry out research at sea. Research vessels carry out a number of roles. Some of these roles can be combined into a single vessel but others require a dedicated ...

named "Sindhu Sadhana" on 14 July 2014 from

Mormugao Mormugao is a seaport city situated in the eponymous Mormugao taluka (municipality) of the South Goa district, South district, in the Goa state, India. It has a deep natural harbour and remains Goa's chief port. Towards the end of the Indo-Po ...

harbour in

Goa Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...

. In a written response to the Lok Sabha on 31 July, he announced that India had signed cooperative arrangements with 33 countries for "peaceful use of outer space". He further added that areas of co-operation included

remote sensing Remote sensing is the acquisition of information about an object or phenomenon without making physical contact with the object, in contrast to in situ or on-site observation. The term is applied especially to acquiring information about Earth ...

of earth, launch services, satellite communication,

telemetry Telemetry is the in situ data collection, collection of measurements or other data at remote points and their automatic data transmission, transmission to receiving equipment (telecommunication) for monitoring. The word is derived from the Gr ...

space exploration Space exploration is the use of astronomy and space technology to explore outer space. While the exploration of space is carried out mainly by astronomers with telescopes, its physical exploration though is conducted both by robotic spacec ...

and

space law Space law is the body of law governing space-related activities, encompassing both international and domestic agreements, rules, and principles. Parameters of space law include space exploration, liability for damage, weapons use, rescue efforts ...

. He further launched India's first home-made broad spectrum

confocal microscope Confocal microscopy, most frequently confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) or laser confocal scanning microscopy (LCSM), is an optical imaging technique for increasing optical resolution and contrast of a micrograph by means of using a sp ...

on 7 October at

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

. He announced that the government was considering increasing the retirement age of scientists to 62 years. The ministry increased the stipend of researchers by 50% at the end of the month. On 8 November 2014, Singh was replaced by Harsh Vardhan, another doctor as the minister of science and technology and earth sciences.

Minister of state in space and atomic energy

During Singh's ministership, the fourth

Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), with an operational name of NavIC (acronym for 'Navigation with Indian Constellation; also, 'sailor' or 'navigator' in Indian languages), is an autonomous regional satellite navigation s ...

was launched by

ISRO The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO; ) is the national space agency of India, headquartered in Bengaluru. It operates under the Department of Space (DOS) which is directly overseen by the Prime Minister of India, while the Chairman ...

in April 2015 which would provide "navigation and communication facility to all the surrounding countries". On 29 April 2018, he along with ISRO chairman

K. Sivan Kailasavadivoo Sivan (born 14 April 1957) is an Indian space scientist who served as the Secretary of the Department of Space and chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation and Space Commission. He has previously served as the Director o ...

confirmed that India would send a manned mission to moon by 2022 as proposed by Prime Minister Modi.

Minister of state for Personnel, Public Grievances and pension

During Singh's tenure as the minister of personnel, public grievances and pension, the

Union Public Service Commission The Union Public Service Commission (ISO: ), commonly abbreviated as UPSC, is India's premier central recruitment agency for recruitment of all the Group 'A' officers under Government of India. It is responsible for appointments to and exami ...

refused to count the marks of English comprehension in the Civil Services Aptitude Test. This violated the status quo of the question paper as suggested by the Arvind Varma committee. Interviews were discontinued for lower tier government jobs as well the need of attestation by a gazetted officer was also discontinued. On 20 March 2019, Pinaki Chandra Ghose, a former

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

judge was appointed as India's first

Lokpal A Lokpal ( sa, लोकपाल ''lokapāla'', "defender of people" or "People's Friend") is an anti-corruption authority or body of ombudsman who represents the public interest in the Republic of India. The current Chairperson of Lokpal is Pra ...

Minister of state for Development of North Eastern region

On 8 November 2014, in a cabinet reshuffle, Singh was appointed Minister of State (Independent charge) in the

Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region The Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region is a Government of India ministry, established in September 2001, which functions as the nodal Department of the Central Government to deal with matters related to the socio-economic developm ...

and replaced V.K. Singh. In the ministry, he introduced the use of satellite imaging for surveying and building roads and for "preparation of utilisation certificates with fool-proof accuracy". He advised

Sarbananda Sonowal Sarbananda Sonowal ( Assamese: সৰ্বানন্দ সোণোৱাল / IPA: xɔɹbanɔndɔ xʊnʊwal; born 31 October 1962) is an Indian politician from Assam who is the current Cabinet Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and ...

, the

Chief Minister of Assam The chief minister of Assam, an Indian state, is the head of the Government of Assam. As per the Constitution of India, the governor is the state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief minister. Following e ...

to utilise the Assam Remote Sensing Application Centre to construct smart cities and in urban development. On 23 November 2015, Singh announced that the central government has decided to make

Mizoram Mizoram () is a state in Northeast India, with Aizawl as its seat of government and capital city. The name of the state is derived from "Mizo people, Mizo", the endonym, self-described name of the native inhabitants, and "Ram", which in the Mizo ...

a "bamboo state" and the ministry proposed steps for the commercial utilisation of the state's bamboo potential. In January 2016, he said that the

Northeast India , native_name_lang = mni , settlement_type = , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = , motto = , image_map = Northeast india.png , ...

was "emerging destination for new Startups". In the

Startup India Startup India is an initiative of the Government of India. The campaign was first announced by Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi during his speech on 15 August 2015. The action plan of this initiative is focussing on three areas: # Simplif ...

scheme launched by Modi, the ministry added an additional incentive, "venture"funds. This fund would provide the aspiring entrepreneurs "relief from financial liabilities" and thus according to Singh, youth from other parts of India would "participate in the development of the North-Eastern States". In September 2018,

Pakyong Airport Pakyong Airport is a seasonal domestic airport serving Pakyong, Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim, India. Spread over , the airport is located at Pakyong about 31 km (22 mi) south of Gangtok. At 4,646 ft, Pakyong Airport is one of ...

Sikkim Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Siligur ...

's first greenfield airport was inaugurated by Modi. Previously, Singh had set up a deadline of 2017. In the same month, he announced that an airport would also be built in

Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (, ) is a state in Northeastern India. It was formed from the erstwhile North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and became a state on 20 February 1987. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south. It shares int ...

2014 Jammu and Kashmir election

On 17 November 2014, the party announced that Singh was appointed the head of the 18 member Election Campaign Committee for the upcoming legislative assembly election in his native state. He formulated the strategy for the party. However, no party managed to get a majority in the election. The media speculated that Singh might become the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir as he had the support of

and

and was popular amongst the Hindus of

. The party negotiated with

party in order to form a coalition government. However, talks fell flat when the National Conference rejected the demand of a Hindu chief minister for which Singh was a front runner.

Political views

Singh said that the

Article 370 of the Constitution of India Article 370 of the Indian constitution gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, a region located in the northern part of Indian subcontinent and part of the larger region of Kashmir which has been the subject of a dispute between India, Pak ...

, which gave a special status to the state of

was temporary in nature and quoted India's first prime minister

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

for the same. He alleged that Congress and National Conference parties had fooled the people of the state "in the name of Article 370". He further criticised former chief minister

Sheikh Abdullah Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah (5 December 1905 – 8 September 1982) was an Indian politician who played a central role in the politics of Jammu and Kashmir Abdullah was the founding leader of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference (later rena ...

for misusing the article to lengthen the term of the assembly.

Personal life

On 16 April 1982, Singh married Manju Singh. They have two sons.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Jitendra Living people Lok Sabha members from Jammu and Kashmir Dogra people India MPs 2014–2019 Indian medical researchers Indian endocrinologists People from Udhampur district Union ministers of state of India Union ministers of state of India with independent charge Narendra Modi ministry Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Jammu and Kashmir Medical doctors from Jammu and Kashmir India MPs 2019–present 1956 births