Shripad Yesso Naik, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH ministry, also junior minister in MoD

After initially serving as the Union Minister of State for Tourism, Sripad Yesso Nail — who was made the Union Minister of State with Independent charge of the newly formed AYUSH Ministry, has retained the responsibility in 2019. Along with that he has also got the charge as a Minister of State in the Ministry of Defence. An MP from Goa North, Shripad Yesso Naik was made the Minister of State for the Ministry of Culture in Narendra Modi’s inaugural Cabinet in 2014. In 2017, Naik was made the Minister of state for the Department of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH), where he proposed several big budget initiatives including opening 100 AYUSH hospitals across the country. Under his leadership, the AYUSH ministry was criticised for publishing public information pamphlets with bizarre and unscientific advisories. He was also a Minister of State for the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Ministry of Tourism. Born on 4 October 1952 in Adpai, North Goa District, Goa, Naik holds a BA degree from University of Mumbai. His official profession is that of a businessperson. A five-time MP, Naik was elected to Lok Sabha for the first time in 1999 from Panaji Lok Sabha constituency. The same year he was made a member of the Standing Committee on Transport and Tourism and a member of the consultive committee for MInistry of Rural Employment. He also worked as a Minister of State for other ministries like Agriculture, Shipping, Civil Aviation, Road Transport & Highways and Finance in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. In 2004, he was re-elected from Panaji once again. However, in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, he contested from North Goa and won, and has been winning the constituency since then. In the 2019 elections, he contested again from North Goa and won the seat comfortably receiving a total of 2,44,034 votes. He defeated Congress’ Girish Raya Chodankar in the polls.​