Margaret Alva who is also known as Margaret Nazareth is appointed as the governor of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Goa. She is the senior figure in Indian National Congress and she is also serving as Joint Secretary of All India Congress Committee.
Margaret Alva was born on 14th April 1942. She is the governor of the Indian state of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Goa and has previously been governor of Uttarakhand. She took over the position of Governor of Rajasthan from the Punjab governor, Shivraj Patil, who had been holding an additional charge of that state.
Early Life of Margaret Alva
Margaret Alva belongs from a Christian family at Mangalore in Karnataka. She obtained Bachelor in Arts degree from Mount Carmel College of Bengaluru and a law degree from Government Law College in the same city. She was a keen and appreciated debater during her time at college and had some involvement in students` movements at that time.
Career of Margaret Alva
Margaret Alva is a lawyer by profession. Her works as an advocate is appreciated in the legal world. She has a keen involvement with welfare organisations. She eventually became president of the Young Women`s Christian Association. One of her early involvements was with the "Karuna", a non-governmental organisation, which she founded. This non governmental organisation is focusing on social and economical issues relating to women and children.
Political Career of Margaret Alva
It was 1969, when Margaret Alva entered in Indian political scenario. She joined in Indian National Congress and later became the well known face in national politics. She was strongly influenced by her husband and father-in-law, Joachim Alva. The wife of Joachim Alva was Violet Alva. She was the Member of Parliament representing the Indian National Congress. She served as the Joint Secretary of the All India Congress Committee between 1975 and 1977. She was also the General Secretary of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee between 1978 and 1980.
In April 1974, Margaret Alva had been elected to the Raiya Sabha as a representative of Indian National Congress. She served a six-year term and was then re-elected for a further three six-year terms, in 1980, 1986 and 1992. During her time in the Rajya Sabha, she was Vice-Chairman (1983-85) and also served terms as Union Minister of State in the ministries for Parliamentary Affairs (1984-85) and for Youth and Sports and Women and Child Development, an arm of the Ministry of Human Resource Development. She also served on various Honorary House committees, which acquired her a considerable degree of procedural expertise. She also served as the Minister for Science and Technology under UPA regime.
Margaret Alva was elected to the 13th Lok Sabha as a Member of Parliament in 1999, serving a five-year term. She lost a subsequent re-election attempt in the Uttara Kannada District constituency. Between 2004 and 2009, she served as General Secretary of the All India Congress Committee and was an advisor to the Bureau of Parliamentary Studies and Training, a government body that works with newly elected parliamentary representatives at both national and state level.
On 6 August 2009, Margaret Alva became the first female Governor of Uttarakhand. Then she moved to Rajasthan.
Personal Life of Margaret Alva
Margaret Alva married Niranjan Alva, a business man by profession, on 24 May 1964, with whom she has one daughter and three sons, including Niret Alva.
