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Punjab Government and Ministries


The state of Punjab has been developed at a very fast pace after independence and is referred to as the "Granary of India". It is divided into 20 districts for the convenience of administration, Amritsar, Bhatinda, Faridkot, Fatehgarh, Ferozepur, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Ludhiana, Mansa, Moga, Muktsar, Nawanshahr, Patiala, Ropar, Mohali, Tarntaran, Sangrur and Barnala. The Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh heads the present Punjab government. Shri V.P. Singh Badnore is the ceremonial head of the state, who is the Governor of Punjab. Several portfolios of the ministers of Punjab government are as follows:


Punjab Ministries & Departments

  • Minister-in-Charge of Department of Agriculture
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Animal Husbandary, Fisheries and Dairy Development
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department of Civil Aviation
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Cooperation
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Cultural Affairs, Archives& museums
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department of Defence Services Welfare Minister
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Election Commission
  • Minister of Forest and Wild Life
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Finance
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Food & Supplies
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Health & Family Welfare
  • Minister for Jails
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department of Industries and Commerce Minister
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department of Information
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Irrigation
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Local Government
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Information & Public Relation Minister
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Parliamentary Affairs
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Printing & Stationary
  • Minister-in-charge of Department Medical Education
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department of Programme Implementation
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Revenue & Rehabilitation
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Rural Development
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department School Education
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Social Security, Women and Child Development Minister
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department of Sports
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Technical Education and Industrial Training
  • Minister-in-Charge Department of Tourism
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Transport
  • Minister-in-Charge of Department Water Supply & Sanitation

National Parties

The political parties of Punjab are classified into two types: National Parties and State Parties. National parties are political parties which participate in the electoral polls all over India like Indian National Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party, Communist Party of India, Bahujan Samaj Party, Samajwadi Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist) etc. The national parties have a strong presence on the political scenario of Punjab. State parties or regional parties take part in the various polls but only in one state.

Some of the national parties in Punjab are as follows:
  • Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was established by Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee. The party has been ruling the states of Gujarat, Jharkand, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Orissa, and Haryana.

  • Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has been constituted by Kanshi Ram in 1984. BSP has made its presence in the political scenario of India, because its objective was to safeguard the rights of Dalit people.

  • Communist Party of India: On 26 December 1925, Communist Party of India was formed by a handful of young patriots. It differs from the CPM on ideologies and has made a strong presence in the states of West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura.

  • Communist Party of India (Marxist) was established after splitting from the Communist Party of India in 1964. The Party follows the philosophies and ideologies of Marxism-Leninism.

  • Indian National Congress is commonly known as the Congress Party is the oldest and the largest political party in India. It was founded in 1885 and it played a vital role in the Indian struggle of independence. Great leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawahar Lal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Netaji Subash Chandra Bose, Rajiv Gandhi etc. have been associated with the party.

State Political Parties

The Punjab state political parties or regional parties contest in different elections within a particular state. Few state political parties in Punjab are Shiromani Akali Dal and Shiromani Akali Dal (Simranjit Singh Mann). These political parties try to represent the problems of Punjab and work for the enrichment of the culture and language.

Panchayats

The administration system has 3 levels: village, block and district. Panchayats operate at the village level. The Panchayats of Punjab are the local bodies working for the welfare of the village. It constitutes of members ranging from 7 to 31. However, it can have more than 31 members but not less than 7. Panchayat is a form of Indian political system which combines five neighbouring villages known as panch. The primary units of administration in Panchayats are the gram panchayats.

The members of the Panchayat are known as "panches", who take decisions regarding the disputes among the villagers and villages. According to the Indian Constitution, Panchayats have the authority to work as organizations of self-government. Panchayats play a vital role in the administration of the rural areas of Punjab. Panchayats have been vested with certain powers and responsibilities:
  • Proper planning for economic development and social justice in the villages of Punjab.
  • Enforcement of schemes related to economic development and social justice as mentioned in the Eleventh Schedule of the Constitution.
  • Collection and levy of taxes, duties, tolls and fees.

Apart from these responsibilities, the government of Punjab is also planning to strengthen facilities relating to health, education, drinking water, sewage, the telephone service, banking services and power supply through the panchayats. The income from market committees and cattle fairs are one of the sources of income of the panchayats, which has been based on the pattern of West Bengal, Kerala and Karnataka.

Boards and Commissions

Punjab is located in the northern part of India. The economy of the region is chiefly agrarian with very few industries. The economy of Punjab is one of the most developed among the states of India. The state has 1, 94,000 small scale industrial units and 586 large and medium units. To look after the requirements of the people and the industrial units the Punjab, government has established different boards and commissions. There a number of Punjab Boards and Commissions which provide important advisory, regulatory, policy-making services to the Government of Punjab.

The various Punjab Boards are:
  • Punjab Infrastructure Development Board (PIDB) is engaged in strengthening the infrastructure of Punjab.
  • Punjab State Agricultural Marketing Board was formed on 26 May 1961. The objective of the board is to ensure the proper operation and supervision of the marketing network of sale, purchase, storage and processing of various processed or non processed agricultural products.
  • The Punjab State Board of Technical Education and Industrial Training (PSBTE & IT) is an independent statutory body formed under the Punjab State Board of Technical Education & Industrial Training 1992 Act. Its objective is to ensure high standard of education by controlling the academic standards in Technical Education Institutes of Punjab.
  • The Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) is a statutory organization established on 01.02.1959. The electricity board has been providing service to more than 60 lakh consumers

The various Punjab Commissions are:
  • The Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) has been formed by the Government of Punjab. It decides the tariff for the electricity used by the various customers under the category of wholesale, bulk, grid or retail.
  • The State Information Commission, Punjab was formed on 11 October 2005.

Municipal Administration

Municipal Administration of Punjab looks after the developmental and administrative activities of the different cities and districts of Punjab. It has been delivering its duties diligently. It supervises and administers the urban areas of the state. The various responsibilities of the Municipal Administration are as follows:
  • To supply clean and safe drinking water to the people.
  • To provide and maintain proper drainage and sewage systems.
  • To provide public street lighting.
  • To maintain the sanitation and hygiene of public toilets.
  • To construct and maintain bus terminals, roads, culverts and bridges
  • To look after the maintenance of public parks and gardens.
  • To make sure that there is a systematic and planned growth of cities.
  • To regulation of building construction
  • To issue licenses for various Trades.
  • To issue Birth and Death certificates.

Apart from these, Municipal Administration deals with some other responsibilities like education, health, community and recreational services.

The main sources of income of the Municipal Administration of Punjab are:
  • To collect taxes on building and lands
  • To levy taxes on the usage of water
  • To collect fee for issuing trade licenses
  • To collect license fee from builders and promoters

The Government of Punjab through Directorate of Municipal Administration administers the operation of the municipalities. The Directorate supervises the duties of the municipalities, and plans appropriate human resource policies.

Punjab Government Departments

The state of Punjab has a developing economy. It has the highest average growth rate of 10% among the states of India. There are a number of departments and institutions in the Punjab Government. These departments and institutions look after the different sections which form an important aspect of the administration of the state. Under the leadership of the Chief Minister and the Governor, they work efficiently towards the service of the people and the development of the state.

The various Punjab Government Departments are as follows:
  • Agriculture
  • Architecture
  • Culture, Archaeology & Museums
  • Cane Commissioner
  • Employment Department
  • Food and Supplies & Consumer Affairs Department
  • Removal of Grievances
  • Health & Family Welfare
  • cise & Taxation
  • Social Welfare
  • Social Security and Women & Child Development
  • Welfare Department for SCs & BCs
  • Technical Education
  • Finance
  • Prosecution & Litigation
  • Information of Language Department
  • Punjab Legal Services Authority
  • Irrigation
  • Town & Country Planning
  • Homeopathic Department Punjab
  • Higher Education
  • Department of Soil & Water Conservation
  • Directorate of Disinvestment, Punjab
  • Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Department
  • Ayurvedic Department
  • Department of Information Technology

The various training and educational institutes of Punjab are as follows:
  • Central Institute of Post Harvest Engineering and Technology (CIPHET)
  • Dr B R Ambedkar National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar
  • Guru Nanak Dev University
  • Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration, Punjab (MGSIPAP)
  • National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER)
  • National Institute of Secondary Steel Technology (NISST)
  • Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports (NSNIS)
  • Panjab University
  • Punjab Agricultural University (PAU)
  • Punjab State Board of Technical Education and Industrial Training
  • Punjabi University
  • Pushpa Gujral Science City
  • Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology (SLIET)
  • Technical Educational and Industrial Training Department (DTE-IT), Punjab

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Last Updated on : October 14, 2014