24 years of Narendra Modi: One leader, many milestones

Gandhinagar: On Oct 7, 2001 Narendra Modi , who had never contested an election, was sworn in as the 14th chief minister of Gujarat. That day marked the beginning of an unbroken 24-year long stint as head of govt — close to 13 years as Gujarat chief minister and the over 11 years as Prime Minister of India .

Flung into popular electoral politics — Modi was an organizational man in the BJP after spending several years as a pracharak with the RSS. Inheriting the reins of a state that was reeling under the weight of the devastating earthquake in Jan 2001, Modi gave a new direction and impetus to Gujarat's development journey during his 13 years as chief minister.

Riding on his popularity and charisma, Modi was sworn in as chief minister after he led the BJP to a decisive victory in assembly elections of 2002 . His growing popularity and dominance over the political landscape saw him leading the saffron party to power again in 2007 and 2012, setting him up firmly to be projected as the PM candidate and assume the top office in 2014.

"On this day in 2001, I took oath as Gujarat's chief minister for the first time. Thanks to the continuous blessings of my fellow Indians, I am entering my 25th year of serving as the head of a Government. My gratitude to the people of India. Through all these years, it has been my constant endeavour to improve the lives of our people and contribute to the progress of this great nation that has nurtured us all (sic)," the PM posted on his X handle on Tuesday.

Be it business networking and investment extravaganza Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit (VGGS), SWAGAT (an online grievance redressal system for citizens), Chintan Shibir or Shala Praveshotsav, as CM, Modi introduced several sweeping reforms in both governance and politics, leading to coinage of the phrase — ‘The Gujarat Model'.

Political commentator and author Ghanshyam Shah said that Modi was perhaps the only Indian politician who has the best knowledge of the "pulse of the people". "Unlike other politicians, Modi has a mission, which was evident during his tenure as Gujarat CM and now as PM," Shah said.

Former state chief secretary P K Laheri, who worked in the state administration when Modi was chief minister, said that the biggest reason for his unbroken stint as head of govt was his energetic style of working, vision and organizational skills.