Kapil Sibal
Encyclopedia
Kapil Sibal is an India
n politician and lawyer. He is currently the Minister of Communications and Information Technology
. He also held the two ministries Ministry of Science and Technology
and Ministry of Earth Sciences
in the First Manmohan Singh Cabinet
. He is also the Minister of Human Resources and Development in the current cabinet.
Sibal was first nominated in July 1988, as a Member of the upper house of the Indian Parliament, the Rajya Sabha
, from the State of Bihar and remained Additional Solicitor General of India, (December 1989 – December 1990) and President, Supreme Court Bar Association, on three occasions (1995–96, 1997–98 and 2001–2002).
in 1970. A year later in 1973, he qualified for the Indian Administrative Service
(IAS), and was offered an appointment, but declined the offer. Instead he decided to set up his own law practice. He was designated as a Senior Lawyer in 1983. He has been the Additional Solicitor General of India between 1989 and 1990.
In August, 2008 an Anthology of Kapil Sibal's poems titled "i witness" was published by Roli Books, New Delhi
. He has also contributed several articles on various prominent issues such as security
, nuclear proliferation
, terrorism
etc., in national dailies and periodicals. He won a landslide victory in the constituency of Chandni Chowk
for the Indian National Congress
against popular TV star Smriti Irani
of the Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP).
Over the years, he has held several important positions in the Government of India
and the Society, such as : Additional Solicitor General of India (December 1989–1990) ; Member, Board of Management, Indira Gandhi National Open University
(1993) ; President, Supreme Court Bar Association (1995–96, 1997–98 and 2001–2002) ; Member, Rajya Sabha
(July 1998) ; Member, Executive Council, Institute of Constitutional and Parliamentary Studies (July, 2001) ; Member, Business Advisory Committee (August, 2001) ; Member, Committee on Home Affairs (January, 2002) ; Co-chairman, Indo-US Parliamentary Forum (2002) ; Member, Board of International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (2002) ; Member, Programme Board of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Indian AIDS initiative (2003) ; Member, Working Group on Arbitrary Detention set up by the Human Rights Commission, Geneva
.
Kapil Sibal has visited several countries such as the USA, Canada
, Pakistan
, Saudi Arabia
, Afghanistan
, Switzerland
, China
, Taiwan
, Bhutan
, South Africa
, Nigeria
, Senegal
and several South East Asian Countries, throughout Europe
and North Africa.
He represented India
in the Annual Meetings of the World Economic Forum in 2005 and 2009 held at Davos
, Switzerland
. He led the Indian delegation to the Annapolis Conference
, USA, held to gather International support for establishment of a Palestinian State and the realization of Israeli–Palestinian Peace during November 2007. He led the Indian delegation to the United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at Bali
in December 2007.
In the 2004 general elections, Sibal won the elections by a large margin from Chandni Chowk
constituency in the National Capital Territory representing the Congress Party by a and was inducted into the Cabinet under Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh
as Union Minister for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences. In the 2009 elections, he again won by a large margin from Chandni Chowk constituency and in the second Manmohan Singh government took charge of the key Human Resource Development ministry.
Minister Sibal has recently approved the creation of an Indian Institute of Technology Muddenahalli
as part of the 11th 5 year plan.
He is also the person who introduced the Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE)
system in India for class IX and Class X and he has also started the changes in the IIT JEE pattern. He has laid the foundation stone for IIT Patna
which will be co-developed with private partnership. It may be available to students more than a year later for . "This is our answer to MIT's US$100 computer," said Sibal. Satish Jha
, chairman of OLPC India, the leading competitor to this venture, questioned his claim that a $35 laptop could be created in a year. Five state Chief Ministers endorsed the OLPC initiative and the Chief Minister of Rajasthan himself inaugurated the project on the day Sibal showcased his future laptop. The event was attended by two members of the Union Cabinet. This also lead to an open letter by Nicholas Negroponte
offering him complete access to MIT and OLPC technologies to help realise India's dream to create a laptop of its own. Though Sibal demonstrated the laptop in a TV interview and suggested that his tablet was for university students and not for the school children as yet, there were questions about India's contribution to it that may be open to scrutiny once the laptop reaches university students.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n politician and lawyer. He is currently the Minister of Communications and Information Technology
Minister of Communications and Information Technology (India)
The Minister of Communications and Information Technology is the head of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and one of the cabinet ministers of the Government of India....
. He also held the two ministries Ministry of Science and Technology
Ministry of Science and Technology (India)
The Ministry of Science and Technology is the Indian government ministry charged with formulation and administration of the rules and regulations and laws relating to science and technology in India.The current minister is Shri Vilasrao Deshmukh....
and Ministry of Earth Sciences
Ministry of Earth Sciences (India)
The Ministry of Earth Sciences formed in 2006 from a merger of the India Meteorological Department , the National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting , the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology , Pune , and Earth Risk Evaluation Centre , and the Ministry of Ocean Development. It is one...
in the First Manmohan Singh Cabinet
First Manmohan Singh Cabinet
The 2004 Council of Ministers of India was the first Council of ministers under the Prime Ministership of Manmohan Singh. It was formed after the Indian general election, 2004 held in four phases during 20 April - 10 May 2004, to elect the 14th Lok Sabha, and it functioned from 2004 to May 2009...
. He is also the Minister of Human Resources and Development in the current cabinet.
Sibal was first nominated in July 1988, as a Member of the upper house of the Indian Parliament, the Rajya Sabha
Rajya Sabha
The Rajya Sabha or Council of States is the upper house of the Parliament of India. Rajya means "state," and Sabha means "assembly hall" in Sanskrit. Membership is limited to 250 members, 12 of whom are chosen by the President of India for their expertise in specific fields of art, literature,...
, from the State of Bihar and remained Additional Solicitor General of India, (December 1989 – December 1990) and President, Supreme Court Bar Association, on three occasions (1995–96, 1997–98 and 2001–2002).
Career
Kapil Sibal joined the Bar associationBar association
A bar association is a professional body of lawyers. Some bar associations are responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in their jurisdiction; others are professional organizations dedicated to serving their members; in many cases, they are both...
in 1970. A year later in 1973, he qualified for the Indian Administrative Service
Indian Administrative Service
The Indian Administrative Service is the administrative civil service of the Government of India. It is one of the three All India Services....
(IAS), and was offered an appointment, but declined the offer. Instead he decided to set up his own law practice. He was designated as a Senior Lawyer in 1983. He has been the Additional Solicitor General of India between 1989 and 1990.
In August, 2008 an Anthology of Kapil Sibal's poems titled "i witness" was published by Roli Books, New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
. He has also contributed several articles on various prominent issues such as security
Security
Security is the degree of protection against danger, damage, loss, and crime. Security as a form of protection are structures and processes that provide or improve security as a condition. The Institute for Security and Open Methodologies in the OSSTMM 3 defines security as "a form of protection...
, nuclear proliferation
Nuclear proliferation
Nuclear proliferation is a term now used to describe the spread of nuclear weapons, fissile material, and weapons-applicable nuclear technology and information, to nations which are not recognized as "Nuclear Weapon States" by the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons, also known as the...
, terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
etc., in national dailies and periodicals. He won a landslide victory in the constituency of Chandni Chowk
Chandni Chowk
Chandni Chowk , originally meaning moonlit square or market, is one of the oldest and busiest markets in Old Delhi, now in central north Delhi, India...
for the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
against popular TV star Smriti Irani
Smriti Zubin Irani
Smriti Zubin Irani is an Indian television actress, producer and politician, who has appeared in the Hindi television soap opera, Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, in which she played the main character of Tulsi Virani....
of the Bharatiya Janata Party
Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party ,; translation: Indian People's Party) is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Indian National Congress. Established in 1980, it is India's second largest political party in terms of representation in the parliament...
(BJP).
Over the years, he has held several important positions in the Government of India
Government of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
and the Society, such as : Additional Solicitor General of India (December 1989–1990) ; Member, Board of Management, Indira Gandhi National Open University
Indira Gandhi National Open University
The Indira Gandhi National Open University , known as IGNOU is a national university with its headquarters in New Delhi, Delhi, India. Named after former Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, the university was established in 1985 with a budget of 2000 crore, when the Parliament of India passed...
(1993) ; President, Supreme Court Bar Association (1995–96, 1997–98 and 2001–2002) ; Member, Rajya Sabha
Rajya Sabha
The Rajya Sabha or Council of States is the upper house of the Parliament of India. Rajya means "state," and Sabha means "assembly hall" in Sanskrit. Membership is limited to 250 members, 12 of whom are chosen by the President of India for their expertise in specific fields of art, literature,...
(July 1998) ; Member, Executive Council, Institute of Constitutional and Parliamentary Studies (July, 2001) ; Member, Business Advisory Committee (August, 2001) ; Member, Committee on Home Affairs (January, 2002) ; Co-chairman, Indo-US Parliamentary Forum (2002) ; Member, Board of International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (2002) ; Member, Programme Board of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Indian AIDS initiative (2003) ; Member, Working Group on Arbitrary Detention set up by the Human Rights Commission, Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
.
Kapil Sibal has visited several countries such as the USA, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, Bhutan
Bhutan
Bhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
and several South East Asian Countries, throughout Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and North Africa.
He represented India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
in the Annual Meetings of the World Economic Forum in 2005 and 2009 held at Davos
Davos
Davos is a municipality in the district of Prättigau/Davos in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has a permanent population of 11,248 . Davos is located on the Landwasser River, in the Swiss Alps, between the Plessur and Albula Range...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. He led the Indian delegation to the Annapolis Conference
Annapolis Conference
-Attendees:U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice organized and hosted the conference. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, and U.S. President George W. Bush attended the meeting...
, USA, held to gather International support for establishment of a Palestinian State and the realization of Israeli–Palestinian Peace during November 2007. He led the Indian delegation to the United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at Bali
Bali
Bali is an Indonesian island located in the westernmost end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, lying between Java to the west and Lombok to the east...
in December 2007.
In the 2004 general elections, Sibal won the elections by a large margin from Chandni Chowk
Chandni Chowk
Chandni Chowk , originally meaning moonlit square or market, is one of the oldest and busiest markets in Old Delhi, now in central north Delhi, India...
constituency in the National Capital Territory representing the Congress Party by a and was inducted into the Cabinet under Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh is the 13th and current Prime Minister of India. He is the only Prime Minister since Jawaharlal Nehru to return to power after completing a full five-year term. A Sikh, he is the first non-Hindu to occupy the office. Singh is also the 7th Prime Minister belonging to the Indian...
as Union Minister for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences. In the 2009 elections, he again won by a large margin from Chandni Chowk constituency and in the second Manmohan Singh government took charge of the key Human Resource Development ministry.
Minister Sibal has recently approved the creation of an Indian Institute of Technology Muddenahalli
Indian Institute of Technology Muddenahalli
Indian Institute of Technology Muddenahalli, also known as IIT Muddenahalli, is an autonomous engineering and technology-oriented institute of higher education that has been approved by the Government of India with construction set to be completed in 2012...
as part of the 11th 5 year plan.
He is also the person who introduced the Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE)
Continuous and comprehensive evaluation
Continuous and comprehensive evaluation is an education system newly introduced by Central Board of Secondary Education in India, for middle school.-Introduction:...
system in India for class IX and Class X and he has also started the changes in the IIT JEE pattern. He has laid the foundation stone for IIT Patna
One Laptop per Child (OLPC) and $35 Laptop
He has also announced an Indian touchscreen tablet computer, SakshatSakshat
The Aakash is an Android tablet computer jointly developed by the London-based company DataWind with the Indian Institute of Technology Rajasthan and manufactured by the India-based company Quad, at a new production centre in Hyderabad — under a trial run of 100,000 units. The tablet was...
which will be co-developed with private partnership. It may be available to students more than a year later for . "This is our answer to MIT's US$100 computer," said Sibal. Satish Jha
Satish Jha
Satish Jha is an Indian social entrepreneur, who is currently President and CEO of OLPC India Foundation.-Digital Divide and ICT for Development:...
, chairman of OLPC India, the leading competitor to this venture, questioned his claim that a $35 laptop could be created in a year. Five state Chief Ministers endorsed the OLPC initiative and the Chief Minister of Rajasthan himself inaugurated the project on the day Sibal showcased his future laptop. The event was attended by two members of the Union Cabinet. This also lead to an open letter by Nicholas Negroponte
Nicholas Negroponte
Nicholas Negroponte is an American architect best known as the founder and Chairman Emeritus of Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab, and also known as the founder of the One Laptop per Child Association ....
offering him complete access to MIT and OLPC technologies to help realise India's dream to create a laptop of its own. Though Sibal demonstrated the laptop in a TV interview and suggested that his tablet was for university students and not for the school children as yet, there were questions about India's contribution to it that may be open to scrutiny once the laptop reaches university students.
External links
- In Conversation: Kapil Sibal, HRD Minister Business StandardBusiness StandardBusiness Standard is an Indian English-language daily newspaper published by Business Standard Ltd in two languages, English and Hindi...
- Profile at Ministry of Science and Technology, Official website
- Kapil Sibal Update