Harsh Vardhan (Delhi politician)

Harsh Vardhan (born Harshvardhan Goel,[1] 13 December 1954) is an Indian otorhinolaryngologist and the incumbent Minister of Science and Technology, Minister of Health and Family Welfare and Minister of Earth Sciences in the BJP-led NDA government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He represents Chandni Chowk in Delhi as a Member of Parliament in the 17th Lok Sabha. He was elected to the office of Chairperson of Executive Board of the World Health Organization from May 22, 2020.[2]

Harsh Vardhan
Dr. Harsh Vardhan
Chairman of the WHO Executive Board
Incumbent
Assumed office 22 May 2020
Preceded by	Hiroki Nakatani
Minister of Health and Family Welfare
Incumbent
Assumed office 31 May 2019
Prime Minister	Narendra Modi
Preceded by	Jagat Prakash Nadda
In office 26 May 2014 – 9 November 2014
Prime Minister	Narendra Modi
Preceded by	Ghulam Nabi Azad
Succeeded by	Jagat Prakash Nadda
Minister of Science and Technology
Incumbent
Assumed office 9 November 2014
Prime Minister	Narendra Modi
Preceded by	Jitendra Singh
Minister of Earth Sciences
Incumbent
Assumed office 9 November 2014
Prime Minister	Narendra Modi
Preceded by	Jitendra Singh
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
Incumbent
Assumed office 16 May 2014
Preceded by	Kapil Sibal
Constituency	Chandni Chowk
Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
In office 27 May 2017 – 24 May 2019
Prime Minister	Narendra Modi
Preceded by	Anil Madhav Dave
Succeeded by	Prakash Javadekar
Member of the Delhi Legislative Assembly
In office 1993 – 16 May 2014
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	S. K. Bagga
Constituency	Krishna Nagar
Personal details
Born	Harshvardhan Goel [1] 13 December 1954 Delhi, India
Nationality	Indian
Political party	Bharatiya Janata Party
Spouse(s)	Nutan Goel
Children	3
Residence	New Delhi
Education	M.B.B.S., M.S.
Alma mater	Zakir Husain Delhi College, New Delhi Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Memorial Medical College, Kanpur Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University, Kanpur
Profession	Otorhinolaryngologist Politician

Early life

Harsh Vardhan was born in Delhi to Om Prakash Goel and Sneh Lata Goel.[3] Vardhan finished his schooling from Happy School, Daryaganj, in 1971. He attended Zakir Husain Delhi College of the University of Delhi and Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Memorial Medical College of the Kanpur University, where he graduated in 1979 with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery. He earned his Master of Surgery in Otorhinolaryngology from the same college in 1983.[4][5] Harsh Vardhan has been a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh since childhood.[6]

Personal life

Harsh Vardhan is married to Nutan, and they have two sons and one daughter.[6]

Political career

In 1993, he was elected as a member of the Delhi Assembly representing Krishna Nagar.[7] He was appointed as the State Minister of Health and Minister of Law for Delhi.[8] He later became the state Minister of Education in 1996.[9] Vardhan has been re-elected from the same constituency in the 1998, 2003, 2008 and 2013 elections.[10][11][12][13]

Minister of Health and Family Affairs of Delhi

Harsh Vardhan as the State Minister of Health in 1994 oversaw the successful implementation of the pilot project of the Pulse Polio Programme which involved the mass immunisation of 1 million children up to the age of 3 in Delhi.[14] In 1995, this programme was launched nationwide leading to 88 million children being immunised.[15] On 28 March 2014, India was declared polio-free by the WHO, as there had been no reported cases for three years.[16]

In 1997, the Delhi Prohibition of Smoking and Non-Smokers Health Protection Act was passed in the Delhi assembly which was one of the first anti-tobacco laws implemented by any state government.[17] The act applied across the NCT of Delhi. It prohibited smoking in places of public work or use for example hospitals, restaurants, and educational institutions and in public service vehicles. It also prohibited the sale of smoking substances such as tobacco and beedis to anyone below the age of eighteen. Smoking products could not also be sold or stored within 100 metres of any educational institution. Under the provisions of the act, fines would be applied to anyone who contravened the law and they could potentially be ejected from places of public use by the police.[18]

2013 Delhi Assembly elections

On 23 October 2013, Vardhan was named the Chief Minister candidate for Delhi Assembly elections by the BJP.[19] After the 2013 elections, BJP emerged as the single largest party winning 31 out of the 70 seats in the Fifth Legislative Assembly of Delhi. However, they fell short of an absolute majority so were unable to form the government.[20]

2014 Lok Sabha election

Harsh Vardhan contested the Chandni Chowk seat in Delhi where he defeated the incumbent Union Minister of Law and Justice, Kapil Sibal of the Indian National Congress.[21] He was also appointed in the first Narendra Modi government as Minister of Health and Family Welfare on 26 May 2014.[22][23] In May 2017, he was given the additional charge of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change following the death of Minister Anil Madhav Dave.[24]

2019 Lok Sabha election

Harsh Vardhan again contested the Chandni Chowk seat in Delhi where he defeated Congress candidate Jai Parkash Aggarwal by a margin of 2,28,145 votes. While Vardhan received 52.94% votes, runner-up Aggarwal polled 29.67% votes.[25]

As Union Minister

Vardhan taking charge as the Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare on June 3, 2019.

Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare, Dr. Harsh Vardhan visiting the Lok Nayak Jaiprakash Narayan Hospital to take stock of preparedness to overcome COVID-19, in Delhi on April 04, 2020.

On 30 May 2019, Harsh Vardhan was sworn in as a cabinet minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's second term government. He is put in charge of the Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Minister of Science and Technology and Minister of Earth Sciences.[26][27] Dr. Harshvardhan as a cabinet minister in Narendra Modi government, declared reservation for academic calendar 2020-2021 in MBBS and BDS colleges for the COVID-19 workers who died during Covid19 pandemic in India.[28]

Controversies

At the 105th Indian Science Congress in March 2018, after the death of legendary British scientist Stephen Hawking, Vardhan claimed that Hawking had said that the Vedas postulated a theory superior to Albert Einstein's theory of relativity, despite the fact that there is no record of Hawking having made the statement.[29][30][31]

In 2019, after the Health Effects Institute released a scientific report estimating 1.2 million annual deaths in India due to air pollution, Vardhan denied the results, arguing that this report was intended to create panic[32]

Awards and honours

Harsh Vardhan has received the following awards and recognitions:[33]

• IMA President's Special Award of Appreciation by the Indian Medical Association in 1994.
• Director-General's Polio Eradication Champion Award Commendation Medal by the World Health Organization in 1998.
• Polio Eradication Champion Award by the Rotary International in 2001.
• "Doctor of the last Decade" (Swasthya Ratna) by Indian Medical Association's New Delhi branch in 2002.

Books Written

• A Tale of Two Drops. New Delhi: Prabhat Prakashan. 2018. p. 218. ISBN 9788184305197.

See also

• Pulse Polio programme in India
• Fifth Legislative Assembly of Delhi

References

1. "What's in a surname?".
2. Shishir Gupta (19 May 2020). "Harsh Vardhan is India's nominee for lead role in WHO, takes over on Friday". hindustantimes.com. Hindustan Times. Retrieved 20 May 2020. The WHO, a specialised agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health, is currently at the forefront of global efforts towards containing the novel coronavirus pandemic. Health minister Harsh Vardhan will have to work closely with Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
   —"Dr Harsh Vardhan set to become chairman of WHO Executive Board on May 22". It may be noted that Dr. Harsh Vardhan's taking over of the post in just a formality as it was decided last year that India's nominee would be elected to the executive board for a three-year term in May 2020. The post is held by rotation for one year among regional groups. Further, the post is not a full-time assignment and Dr. Harsh Vardhan will only chair the board's meetings.
3. "List of Members – Dr. Harsh Vardhan". Delhiassembly.nic.in. Legislative Assembly of Delhi. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
4. "A profile of BJP leader Harsh Vardhan". Hindustan Times. 20 October 2013. Archived from the original on 3 April 2015.
5. "Dr. Harsh Vardhan – Affidavit Regarding Assets/Liabilities". Election Commission of India. p. 7. Retrieved 3 November 2013.
6. "About me – Profile". Drharshvardhan.com. Archived from the original on 4 September 2013. Retrieved 28 August 2013.
7. 1993 Election Commission of India
8. "Dr. Harsh Vardhan Biography". elections.in. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
9. "Harshvardhan is new Delhi BJP president". The Times of India. 19 February 2014. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
10. 1998 Election Commission of India
11. 2003 Election Commission of India
12. 2008 Election Commission of India
13. "Page Not Found". Archived from the original on 2 January 2014. Cite uses generic title (help)
14. T Jacob-John; VM Vashishta (May 2013). "Eradicating poliomyelitis: India's journey from hyperendemic to polio-free status". Indian Journal of Medical Research. 137 (5): 881–94. PMC 3734678. PMID 23760372.
15. "From 200,000 to zero: the journey to a polio free India" (PDF). UNICEF. 22 February 2012. p. 8. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
16. "India and 10 other Asian countries declared polio free". The Guardian. 28 March 2014.
17. "Smoking fine may go up in Delhi". The Times of India. 11 January 2008.
18. "The Delhi Prohibition of Smoking and Non-Smokers Health Protection Act, 1996" (.doc). Indian Railways. Retrieved 12 June 2014.
19. "BJP trusts Dr Harsh Vardhan as its chief ministerial candidate for Delhi". The Economic Times. 23 October 2013.
20. "BJP rejects offer to form govt". The Tribune. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
21. "Constituencywise-All Candidates". Election Commission of India.
22. "Modi's complete cabinet: Jaitley gets Finance, Smriti Human Resources". Firstpost. 27 May 2014.
23. Live, India (26 May 2014). "PM Modi announces list of cabinet ministers with portfolios". IndiaLive.today.
24. "Harsh Vardhan gets additional charge of Environment Ministry". The Hindu Business Line. 18 May 2017. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
25. "Dr Harsh Vardhan: Two-time MP from crucial Chandni Chowk Lok Sabha seat". 30 May 2019.
26. "ENT Surgeon, Dr. Harsh Vardhan Appointed Union Health Minister in Modi Government 2.0". Medical Dialogues. 31 May 2019. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
27. "PM Modi allocates portfolios. Full list of new ministers", Live Mint, 31 May 2019
28. "Children of COVID Warriors Who Died to Get MBBS & BDS Reservation". The Quint. 19 November 2020. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
29. Vardhan, Dr Harsh (16 March 2018). "#ISC2018 –Each and every custom and ritual of Hinduism is steeped in science; every modern Indian achievement is a continuation of our ancient scientific achievement. Even Stephen Hawking said, our Vedas might have a theory superior to Einstein's law E=MC2. @moefcc @IndiaDSTpic.twitter.com/QP9PbLElCd". @drharshvardhan. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
30. Koshy, Jacob (16 March 2018). "Stephen Hawking said Vedas had a 'theory' superior to Einstein's thesis, says Harsh Vardan". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
31. "Vedas superior to Einstein's Theory of Relativity? Union Minister Harsh Vardhan falls for fake information on social media". India Today. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
32. "Minister Harsh Vardhan disagrees with reports on pollution deaths, claims it was released to create panic". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
33. "Biography of Dr Harsh Vardhan, BJP's CM Candidate for Delhi". Bihar Prabha. 21 October 2013. Retrieved 3 November 2013.

External links

• Official website
• Political Information