Modi 3.0: Union council of ministers may reach 81, about 30 to take oath today. See details here

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Narendra Modi and his council of ministers. Close to 30 ministers from the likely full council of 78-81 ministers will take oath today, NDTV reported citing sources.Despite originally aspiring a smaller council, very few ministers are expected to hold more than one portfolio, the report added.Among those taking oath after Modi will include ministers with key portfolios such as coal, civil aviation, defence, external affairs, finance, home, and steel, NDTV reported.

It added that the BJP is likely to keep a hold of the top four ministries — Defence, External Affairs, Finance and Home; and National Democratic Alliance (NDA) allies are likely to bag the other big posts.Also Read | Modi 3.0 Cabinet: A look at the likely candidates for ministerial berths todayThe report added that Chandrababu Naidu's Telegu Desam Party (TDP) is likely to get four berths while Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) or JDU mat take two posts.Sources also told news agency PTI that ministers who are taking oath today have been called for a meeting over tea with Modi at his residence in New Delhi at 11.30 am. A top BJP functionary has called the BJP MPs for the meeting without disclosing the purpose, but it is believed they are likely to be appointed as union ministers this evening, the sources added.The outgoing Modi cabinet had 72 ministers with 13 from Uttar Pradesh.

With the numbers of MPs from UP coming down drastically in the recently-concluded Lok Sabha elections, the representation of MPs from in Modi 3.0 cabinet is likley to go down. Instead, the the new cabinet is expected to have more ministers from Andhra Pradesh and Bihar.As many as 19 ministers in the outgoing Modi 2.0 cabinet lost the elections.