Prime Minister Narendra Modi turned 75 on Wednesday, with the Bharatiya Janata Party launching over a fortnight long 'Sewa Pakhwada' to mark the birthday of its preeminent leader.
'Seeking blessings for the season at Hatkeshwar Temple.'
In the last 11 years, India and the world witnessed what he stood for, what he promised and did not deliver, and what he actually stood for and practised without fearing how history would judge him. Modi's tenure has been punctuated with headline-grabbing decisions, symbolic gestures, and stage-managed moments that continue to define his leadership and India's politics, points out Ramesh Menon.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the revamped Vadnagar railway station where he sold tea during childhood and recalled those days, expressing a desire to visit the new-look facility.
A segmental launching gantry used for construction at a bullet train project site near Ahmedabad accidentally skid from its position and affected the adjoining railway line, disrupting the movement of several trains, officials said on Monday.
As a little child, no one expected him to climb the political ladder in such a fashionable manner. However, almost 65 years later, Narendra Modi will become the 14th prime minister of India. His climb was not an easy one. From the small village of Vadnagar in Gujarat, he first joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and served the organisation diligently. He then joined the BJP in 1987 and was handed the tasks of carrying out rallies. He was the instrumental force in ensuring that Atal Bihari Vajpayee became the prime minister in 1999. Rediff.com tries to piece Modi's life from childhood to the moment he grabbed headlines and showed promise of being the next prime minister -- the time he was elected as Gujarat's chief minister for the first time in 2001.
'Today, let us reaffirm our commitment to strive to realise Gandhiji's dreams. His watchwords, truth and nonviolence, will continue to remain relevant for the whole world. He also taught us that rights and duties are but the two sides of the coin - indeed, the true source of rights is duty. Today we recall his lessons in compassion too - compassion not only for our human neighbours but also for our other neighbours, namely, flora and fauna, rivers and mountains.'
As one moves towards Vadnagar, local issues such as high prices of cattle feed and inflation becomes louder.
Abbas was a classmate and friend of Pankaj Modi, the youngest of the Modi siblings.
'My son is not against anybody. For him Desh Prem is more important than anything else in life'
The prime minister recalled the innumerable every day adversities that his mother encountered and successfully overcame.
The transmogrification of Prime Minister Modi to Saint Modi began with the ground-breaking ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. By identifying himself with Lord Ram, Modi raised himself in popular imagination to a saintly person.
The stall is located on one of the platforms of the Vadnagar Railway station.
Ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Modi had often mentioned that he used to sell tea during his childhood at the Vadnagar railway station along with his father.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday held a roadshow in Vadnagar, his birthplace, in Mehsana district as he arrived on the second day of his visit to Gujarat
Ahead of the prime minister's visit, the administration is busy working on roads and ensuring cleanliness. Fire engines have also been deployed inside the railway station for cleaning of trees on its premises.
The Gujarat tourism department is planning to convert the erstwhile house of Modi's family into a museum, reports Sohini Das.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote a blog dedicated to his mother as she entered the 100th year of her life on Saturday, highlighting her sacrifices and various aspects of her life which 'shaped' his mind, personality, and self-confidence.
Police have busted a gang conducting a fake T20 cricket tournament in Mehsana Gujarat to take bets from Russian bookies by live streaming the matches and arrested four of its members, an official said on Monday.
President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the country in congratulating paddler Bhavinaben Patel for winning a historic silver medal, India's first, in the ongoing Paralympic Games in Tokyo on Sunday.
Sonil Dedhia undertook a visit to Narendra Modi's village Vadnagar and learnt interesting facts about Gujarat chief minister's childhood. He shares his experience in this diary entry
These are the 25 seats to watch out for as Gujarat goes to the polls over two phases on December 1 and 5.
Residents of Vadnagar, the native village of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, on Friday congratulated him as he completed a decade in office.
Wishing him, President Droupadi Murmu said the work for nation-building under his incomparable hardwork, dedication and creativity continue to advance.
Hemant Shivsaran lists the number of projects the Modi government has announced since August to woo Gujarat voters.
Performers from 28 states have been allotted stages erected along the roadshow route, where the two leaders will be greeted by people on both sides of the road. There will also be a 'Garba' performance, the traditional Gujarati dance, on one of the stages, they said. The performances will provide a glimpse of the country's cultural diversity, the officials said.
Did Prime Minister Modi receive a different kind of reception at the Biden White House on Friday than he has has been used to at the American president's home?
So who really is Narendra Modi? Do we really know him? Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com's ready reckoner on the mystery man who is India's new prime minister.
Dubbing Rahul Gandhi as a "specimen", Narendra Modi on Monday lampooned the Congress Vice President for his "little knowledge" on Gujarat and the "falsehood" laid out in his speeches about vast job vacancies and the institution of the Lokayukta in the state.
The prime minister had called ferry service his 'dream project' while addressing a gathering at Gandhinagar on Monday.
While Karnataka reported five new cases, Delhi and Telangana reported four each, and Gujarat reported one fresh case of the Omicron variant.
Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt unearths some never-told-before details of Narendra Modi's early life. Read on!
The focus shifts almost immediately from celebrations to the challenges faced by the man who powered his party to 303 seats in the Lok Sabha.
At the Facebook townhall, Modi again showed a side of him that is at odds with his tough-as-nails public persona.
As counting is underway in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, we take a look at who's leading and who's trailing.
The prime minister has been unstoppable as he transported the BJP to colossal success on a wave of muscular nationalism, majoritarian pride and charisma.
The BJP's message is that the past must be reinvented as creatively as imagination allows, states Sunanda K Datta-Ray.
Voting for the 75 municipalities was held on last Saturday and the results were declared on Monday.
Prime Minister Modi made a strategic blunder of Nehruvian proportions -- presuming no war can happen now, and the Chinese won't be a military threat and risk their economic interests, observes Shekhar Gupta.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances