Meet Varsha Gaikwad: The Minister Of School Education Department Of Maharashtra

Varsha Gaikwad: The Maharashtra government recently decided to slash the school fee by 15 percent for the current academic year.

The State School Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad has been in the news for announcing a fee cut. "I am happy to inform that the cabinet has today decided to cut 15% school fees in the wake of the pandemic. My department was following this up consistently. I thank my cabinet colleagues for their support."

All the parents and student body have welcomed this decision and the minister has been receiving constant appreciation ever since she made this announcement. Get to know her backstory.

1. Varsha Eknath Gaikwad is an Indian politician from the political party, Indian National Congress.
2. Gaikwad is currently a Cabinet Minister in the state government of Maharashtra, presently holding the portfolio of Minister of School Education Department of Maharashtra.
3. She is the daughter of Eknath Gaikwad, a three term MP from Maharashtra who died recently in the month of April due to COVID-19.
4. Gaikwad has been a Member of the Maharashtra State Legislative Assembly (MLA) for four terms, representing the Dharavi Assembly Constituency situated in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
5. Her first term was from 2004 to 2009. Her second term was from 2009 to 2014 during which she was also appointed as the State Minister for Medical Education, Higher and Technical Education, Tourism, Special Assistance from 2009 to 2010.
6. Following which, Gaikwad also held the office of Cabinet Minister for Women and Child Development, Government of Maharashtra from 2010 to 2014.
7. Then, she was again elected from the same seat for the third time and served as an MLA from 2014 to 2019.
8. In 2019, Gaikwad got re-elected from the Dharavi seat for the fourth time and is currently placed at the position of School Education Minister in the Maharashtra Cabinet.
9. Gaikwad belongs to an Ambedkarite Buddhist family.
10. She holds a Master of Science degree in Mathematics and also has a Bachelors degree in Education from The Institute of Science, Mumbai.
11. By profession, Gaikwad was a Professor before entering politics and previously served as a Lecturer in Siddharth College of Arts and Science, Mumbai.
12. She is popularly known as ‘Varsha tai’ in Dharavi.