There is a trend of sorts in Indian families to celebrate milestone birthdays, anniversaries, and occasions. The 25th straight year in public life as an administrator is something certainly worth celebrating for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. But sometimes these milestone moments are also an occasion for us to trace back the journey to where it started from.
The crucible of this quarter-century began in the autumn of 2001 in Gandhinagar, under circumstances that would have broken a conventional politician. Taking charge of a state reeling from a catastrophic earthquake, an exhausted exchequer, and deep administrative paralysis, Narendra Modi immediately discarded the incrementalism of status-quo governance. Instead, he treated the crisis as a blank slate for structural reinvention. If you look at him now, you will figure out that he has followed this mantra all through. Break the status quo. Always! The way to really understand how PM Modi has kept a fine balance between the art of realpolitik and principled economic decisions. Gujarat is a great test case for this.
Jyotigram Yojana was one of the many successful moves he made as Chief Minister. It was a fairly simple move. How do you uncouple agriculture power from politics? There were the shenanigans of state electricity boards, rampant corruption at the local level, and a general belief that ” promise of electricity” was better than ” actual supply of electricity.” Narendra Bhai would have none of this. Many old-timers in Gujarat BJP have told me that the basic change Narendra Modi brought in political thinking was that “real delivery” could be converted into “election-winning” mechanism too. Why just talk about doing something during elections? Why not actually go ahead and do it?
The vibrant Gujarat summit was his other major disruption to national political discourse. Gujarat has always been a state blessed with a massive NRI population. But it was never converted into an “aspirational form of domestic politics” as Modi managed to do. In 2003, a state event leading to garnering of MoUs worth over 14 billion USD was an unthinkable factor. But Modi managed to do this. If you look back now, the culture of each Indian state from Rajasthan to UP, from Maharashtra to Assam, wanting to compete with each other to attract foreign investment really started from the vibrant Gujarat summit itself. In its last edition in 2024, a total of 41,299 project MoUs were signed, securing proposed investment commitments totaling Rs 26.33 lakh crore (approximately $315+ billion USD). Of course, critics will point out to the actual conversion rate, but even a 10 per cent actual realisation over a period of time gives any state a huge momentum.
But the real story of Narendra Modi at 76 is way beyond these numbers. Even after 12 years in power, still managing to be BJP’s neta No.1, standing head and shoulders above all opposition leaders requires a special skill set. That skill set in one word could be traced to “connection”. Narendra Modi still remains India’s foremost “connected” leader. For someone often criticised for not doing press conferences, his ability to connect directly with his electorate through social media and not just political rallies is a masterclass in politics.
But in spite of all this dominance, there is a challenge as well for the Prime Minister. How does he repackage himself for that generation which hasn’t really seen the process how he changed the entire character of national politics. For that young generation, formulating its views on Instagram reels and AI videos, a leader must be seen to be constantly getting subjected to scrutiny. A leader who is accessible but also someone who can answer in unscripted environments. Given the fact that PM Modi has displayed his ability to identify the problems and take course-correction steps immediately, it is just a matter of time before he moves forward on this front too.
In conclusion, these lines are perhaps the best way to capture his life.
A master strategist forging pathways where others only see the stall,
He reads the pulse of millions, watching rivals stumble and fall.
With unyielding focus and a vision bound to outlast the fray,
He reshapes the nation’s destiny and quietly leads the way.
