'Rangila Ram Rao',Permanent Invitee to the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) · Shimla born on 3rd April 1946 to Late Shri. Ranjha Ram Rao is an active member of 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...

 and of the Pradesh Congress Committee. A member of Congress since 1972, he has held many portfolio

Ministry (government department)

A ministry is a specialised organisation responsible for a sector of government public administration, sometimes led by a minister or a senior public servant, that can have responsibility for one or more departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions or other smaller executive, advisory, managerial or...

s in the state Government of Himachal Pradesh

Government of Himachal Pradesh

The Government of Himachal Pradesh also known as the State Government of Himachal Pradesh, or locally as State Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh and its 12 districts...

, India.

Rao was born at Gopalpur

Gopalpur

Gopalpur is a census town under Ranaghat police station of Ranaghat subdivision in Nadia district in the Indian state of West Bengal.-Geography:...

, district Mandi

Mandi district

Mandi district is one of the central districts of Himachal Pradesh state in northern India. Mandi town is the headquarters of Mandi district Mandi. The town has both mythological and historical significance and boasts of a unique temple architecture...

. He is a native speaker of Hindi

Hindi

Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...

 and English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

. He has received a B.A.

Bachelor of Arts

A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 and an LL.B from Punjab University

Panjab University, Chandigarh

Panjab University is one of the oldest universities in India. The university campus is residential, spread over an area of in sectors 14 and 25 of the city of Chandigarh...

, Chandigarh

Chandigarh

Chandigarh is a union territory of India that serves as the capital of two states, Haryana and Punjab. The name Chandigarh translates as "The Fort of Chandi". The name is from an ancient temple called Chandi Mandir, devoted to the Hindu goddess Chandi, in the city...

. During his college years, Rao was a political worker. When he acquired his law degree, he became an advocate

Advocate

An advocate is a term for a professional lawyer used in several different legal systems. These include Scotland, South Africa, India, Scandinavian jurisdictions, Israel, and the British Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man...

 providing free legal aid to the poor.

He was first elected as the Member of the Legislative Assembly

Legislative Assembly

Legislative Assembly is the name given in some countries to either a legislature, or to one of its branch.The name is used by a number of member-states of the Commonwealth of Nations, as well as a number of Latin American countries....

 in 1972, at the age of 26. He was then re-elected in 1977, 1982, 1985, 1993, 1998 and for the 7th time in 2003. In 1977 his margin of victory was highest in the country. Remained General Seceratry of ALL INDIA CONGRESS Committee (A.I.C.C.) from 1977 to 1980. He served as Chief Parliamentary Secretary (P.W.D & Health) from 1980 to 1982. He was then appointed Minister of State for Excise and Taxation, Health, Agriculture serving from 1982 to 1985. He was appointed minister of state for Industries, Excise & Taxation, Horticulture from 1987 to 1990. In 1993 he was appointed Cabinate Minister for Industries, Law,Parliamentary Affairs, Labour & Employment Training and served in that post until March, 1998. He was again appointed Minister for Excise and Taxation, Social Justice & Empowerment, and Town & Country Planning on 6 March 2003. He was awarded with "Bharat Jyoti Award" in 2006.And served in post of Cabinate minister until December 30, 2007