Kamal Nath, a seven-time member of Parliament from Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh, wears his concern for Indian farmers and tribals on his sleeve. However, the man has had a fling or two with international trade policy, something that is now likely to take up much of his time. As Textiles Minister, he was part of WTO talks on the Multi Fibre Agreement (MFA) in 1996. Later, in 1999, he was part of a delegation of parliamentarians that attended the Seattle Ministerial Conference of WTO. "It will be my effort during all negotiations that India's agri-centric interest is India-specific and not comparable with G-20," he says, referring to the alliance of some 20 developing countries including Mexico, Argentina and China that former Commerce Minister Arun Jaitley helped forge during the Cancun round of WTO talks in 2003. Still, the minister is aware that the G-20 wields a bigger stick at WTO talks than India alone. "I will make every effort to ensure G-20 survives," he quickly adds. By the end of June, Nath hopes to present his ExIm policy that he promises will focus on simplifying procedures and reducing transaction costs, the twin bane of most Indian exporters.

WHAT TO EXPECT
T.R. BAALU
Minister of Roads, Surface Transport, Highways and Shipping

T.R. Baalu is as astute as it gets. So, when the businessman-turned-politico is asked about his reaction to the tonnage tax for the shipping industry proposed by former Finance Minister Jaswant Singh, he cleverly retorts, "As a businessman I will say yes, but as a minister my answer will be guarded." Upgrading highway and rural road infrastructure is on the minister's agenda, although he expects the Ministry of Rural Development to chip in for the latter. As for privatisation of Shipping Corporation of India, his answer should please the communists. "I am not a mad man to privatise a profit-making company."

WHAT TO EXPECT
P.M. SAYEED
Minister of Power

Maybe it is his desire to be seen as market friendly that is preventing P.M. Sayeed from scrapping National Thermal Power Corporation's IPO (of 5 per cent of its equity) scheduled for August 2004. Several tough calls await the minister: the fate of Dabhol and implementing the Electricity Act of 2003 for starters. There's no doubt as to where Sayeed's heart lies. "Extensive rural electrification programmes will be put in place to provide access to electricity to those households that do not have any," he says. That's some 73 million households.

WHAT TO EXPECT
MANI SHANKAR AIYAR
Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Panchayati Raj

Known for his quick repartee and his outstanding work in his constituency, Mayiladuturai, Mani Shankar Aiyar occupies one of the hottest seats in the UPA ministry. As this magazine goes to press, he is yet to take a decision on hiking petrol and diesel prices, fixed in December 2003 when the international price of crude was $29 to the barrel (it is now $41). There are other issues he has to address as well: a new pipeline policy that helps companies pipe oil and gas over existing networks, the appointment of a petroleum regulator, and the phasing out of subsidies on LPG and kerosene. That's a bit.

WHAT TO EXPECT
DAYANIDHI MARAN
Minister of Information Technology and Telecommunications

Dayanidhi Maran is, arguably, the most successful businessman who holds a ministerial berth in this government. He cut his teeth running Sumangali Cable Vision, the cable arm of the Sun cable network his family owns (elder brother Kalanidhi is CEO). He has already released a 10-point charter for his ministry detailing convergence, rural teledensity, broadband, fourth generation technologies and a national internet exchange as areas of focus. "The New Telecom Policy of 1999 is outdated," he says. "The telecom sector urgently needs a new policy." And from a national teledensity of 7.5 (phones per 100 people) now, Maran wants India to achieve a rural teledensity of 15 in the next two years. That should be a challenge for even a man who likes to be at the vanguard of technology (or legislation; SCV was the first cable operation in the country to go the Conditional Access System way).

WHAT TO EXPECT
PRAFUL PATEL
Minister of Civil Aviation

One would expect a bidi baron from maharashtra to be a votary of open-market economics. Praful Patel is, and he isn't. He is not averse to allowing Indian private carriers to fly to neighbouring countries. Nor is he against the planned modernisation (by the private sector) of Mumbai and Delhi airports. However, he is categorical that Air India and Indian Airlines will not be privatised. "Simply selling them is not a solution," he says, adding that their fleet upgradation will happen.

WHAT TO EXPECT
SIS RAM OLA
Minister for Labour and Employment

Labour is labour, inside the special economic zone or outside." With those words, Sis Ram Ola reinforces this government's attitude to labour reforms. The one-time farmer from Rajasthan's Jhunjhunu district is keen to do something for the 373 million Indians employed by the unorganised sector. More pressing, however, will be his role in deciding on an equitable rate of interest for the Employee Provident Fund, and his ability to implement the promise of a minimum of 100 days employment in public works programme for at least one adult from under-privileged families.

WHAT TO EXPECT
SHARAD PAWAR
Minister for Agriculture, Food & Civil Supplies, and Consumer Affairs & Public Distribution

It wasn't that agriculture needed a sugar daddy in this government. Yet, in Sharad Pawar, that's what it has got. The minister hasn't given a thought to contract farming and privatisation of food grain storage. What he has, is a more active and autonomous role for Indian Council of Agricultural Research, doubling agricultural credit in the next three years, and "improving per-hectare yield." Only, Pawar's stated philosophy of "removing restrictions for farmers, including (those on) cross-border movement of goods and marketing" may run up against some internal dissent.

-Compiled by Ashish Gupta, Aditya Wali, Sudarshana Banerjee and Alokesh Bhattacharyya