Narendra Modi

In office

India's power grid produces surplus solar power in the afternoon and faces shortages after sunset. On 4 November 2026, the Union Cabinet approved ₹14,500 crore (US$1.53 billion) in viability gap funding for 92 gigawatt-hours of new grid-scale storage by 2030-31.

Updated 4 days ago

Serving third consecutive term

In February 2026, President Donald Trump cut tariffs on Indian goods from 50% to 18% after Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India would stop buying Russian oil, and India put $500 billion of US energy, aircraft and technology purchases on the table over five years. No binding agreement has been signed. The US Supreme Court then struck down the reciprocal tariff regime that the 18% rate rested on, leaving duties on Indian exports unsettled.

Updated Oct 31

Chaired the Cabinet meeting that approved GEC-III

India's grid can't move the renewable power it generates. About 21 GW of clean energy runs on temporary connections, and 12 GW gets cut off during peak solar hours.

Updated Oct 23

Announced ex-gratia compensation

The death toll from the Chorbagan Durga Puja crowd surge rose to 19, with 25 people injured, after the October 17 crush in north Kolkata. Police say a false announcement that the pandal was collapsing set off the panic, while rain and narrow, poorly regulated entry and exit routes made escape harder.

Updated Oct 21

As of September 2026: Inaugurated Inya VoiceOS and launched BharatGen Param2 at AI Impact Summit 2026

In February, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Inya VoiceOS, a 5-billion-parameter voice model that handles 15 Indian languages. By September, the effort had widened: BharatGen launched Param2, a 17-billion-parameter model covering all 22 scheduled languages, and Gnani.ai released Evon 3.3, a 30-billion-parameter model that runs on a single server.

Updated Sep 27

As of September 2026: In office; inaugurated final DFC sections

India's 2,843-kilometer Dedicated Freight Corridor network is now fully operational. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the final three sections of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor on September 8, two decades after the project was first approved.

Updated Sep 8

As of July 2026: Accepted the resignation; announced fast-track courts

About two million students sat India's medical-school entrance exam on May 3. Weeks later the government scrapped it, admitting the papers had leaked. On July 25, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned.

Updated Jul 25

As of July 2026: Signed the strategic partnership in Auckland

No Indian prime minister had set foot in New Zealand for 40 years. On July 11, 2026, Narendra Modi ended that gap in Auckland by signing a package that lets Indian and New Zealand warships refuel and repair at each other's bases.

Updated Jul 11

As of July 2026: Originator of the Aarogya Maitri program behind BHISHM

Two weeks after the June 24 twin earthquakes, Venezuela's confirmed death toll reached 3,535 — more than double the figure recorded in the first days after the disaster. Most international rescue teams have withdrawn, leaving 29,567 Venezuelan military and security personnel and more than 27,000 volunteers to continue recovery.

Updated Jul 9

As of June 2026: Laid foundation stone for permanent headquarters on January 8, 2025

Indian Railways had not added a new zone since 2003. On June 1, the South Coast Railway began operations from Visakhapatnam, becoming the 18th, with 3,532 km of track and 385 stations carved out of two existing zones.

Updated Jun 1

As of May 2026: Government weighing diplomatic and defense response to Beijing's admission

For a year, Beijing said it was not on the battlefield. On May 8, 2026, China's state broadcaster aired interviews with two engineers from the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). They said they had been stationed at Pakistani airbases during the four-day clash with India in May 2025, working alongside Pakistan Air Force crews flying Chinese-built J-10CE fighters.

Updated May 31

As of May 2026: Co-architect of Canada-India reset

Sixteen months ago, Canada and India had no ambassadors in each other's capitals. Ottawa had accused New Delhi of orchestrating the assassination of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil, and both countries expelled six of each other's diplomats in a single day. On March 2, 2026, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi signed five agreements worth $5.5 billion, launched free trade negotiations, and set a target of increasing bilateral trade from $9 billion to $50 billion by 2030.

Updated May 30

As of May 2026: Project champion and public face of the initiative

India declared the Asiatic cheetah extinct in 1952—the only large predator to vanish from the country since independence. Seventy years later, the government launched Project Cheetah, flying in 20 African cheetahs from Namibia and South Africa to Kuno National Park in a first-of-its-kind intercontinental carnivore translocation. Three and a half years in, the population has grown to 38, with 27 cubs born on Indian soil.

Updated May 29

As of May 2026: Third consecutive term; architect of Make in India initiative

For decades, India's aerospace manufacturing remained almost entirely in government hands. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, the state-owned monopoly established in 1940, built every military aircraft and helicopter on Indian soil.

Updated May 29

As of May 2026: Serving third term as Prime Minister

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the Jal Jeevan Mission from the Red Fort on Independence Day 2019. At launch, 16.7% of rural Indian households had tap water; six years later, it's 81.6% (157.9 million homes) and roughly 12.5 crore (125 million) new connections, one of history's fastest and largest infrastructure expansions.

Updated May 27

As of May 2026: Hosting Rubio for same-day bilateral

The Quad foreign ministers met in New Delhi on May 26 and produced three concrete agreements: a joint critical minerals framework, an Indo-Pacific maritime surveillance initiative, and the Quad's first joint infrastructure project — a port in Fiji. Rubio called the trade deal 'on the verge.'

Updated May 26

As of May 2026: Leading government response to Economic Survey 2026

India surpassed Japan in mid-2025 to become the world's fourth-largest economy. On February 1, 2026, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented Union Budget 2026 (India's first major tax code rewrite since 1961), with ₹12.2 lakh crore for capital expenditure and ₹20,000 crore for carbon capture technologies.

Updated May 23

As of May 2026: Hosted EU leaders for Summit and Republic Day

India and the European Union became strategic partners in 2004. At the 16th EU-India Summit on January 27, 2026, they signed a Security and Defence Partnership, making India the third Asian country (after Japan and South Korea) to gain formal access to European defence initiatives. They also concluded a historic free trade agreement (covering 2 billion people and a $27 trillion combined market) that enters force in 2027, giving Indian firms access to the EU's €150 billion SAFE rearmament programme.

Updated May 23

As of May 2026: Serving third term, flagship infrastructure agenda

India's railways date to 1853, when the first train ran 21 miles from Bombay to Thane under British colonial rule. For 170 years, long-distance overnight travel meant cramped, aging coaches.

Updated May 21

As of May 2026: Concluded FTA negotiations with EU; announced deal alongside von der Leyen and Costa on January 27

After 19 years, 14 formal rounds, and a January sprint that defied skeptics, India and the European Union concluded their free trade agreement on January 26, 2026. EU leaders Ursula von der Leyen and António Costa, attending India's Republic Day as chief guests, jointly announced the deal with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 27.

Updated May 20

As of May 2026: Leading India's defense modernization and Israel partnership since 2014

India's Defence Acquisition Council approved an $8.7 billion arms package from Israel in January 2026, headlined by 1,000 SPICE-1000 precision bomb kits (125-kilometer range, GPS-jammed capable), air-to-air missiles, loitering munitions, radars, and networked command systems. India is also acquiring Air LORA missiles (400 kilometers), Ice Breaker missiles (300 kilometers), and Rampage missiles with full technology transfer for domestic production. The purchase makes India Israel's largest defense customer, now accounting for 34% of Israeli arms exports from 2020-2024.

Updated May 19

As of May 2026: Announced central ex‑gratia relief to victims’ families

A fire at the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub in Arpora, Goa, killed 25 people on December 6, 2025. Indoor fireworks ignited flammable décor in a packed venue with a single narrow exit; about 100 people were trapped inside.

Updated May 10

As of May 2026: Navigating US trade reset and tariff talks alongside steadfast Russia partnership

On December 5, 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met in New Delhi for the 23rd India–Russia Annual Summit. They unveiled a 'Programme for Economic Cooperation' through 2030 targeting $100 billion in annual trade and diversification beyond oil and arms, including joint weapons production, a urea plant, agriculture, health, shipping, and labor mobility. The agreement includes a free trade pact with the Eurasian Economic Union despite looming US sanctions.

Updated May 9

As of May 2026: Secures US trade deal reducing tariffs to 18%, easing rupee/trade pressures alongside fiscal support

In 2025, under Governor Sanjay Malhotra, the RBI cut its repo rate by a cumulative 125 basis points—from 6.50% in February to 5.25% on December 5. It was the sharpest easing since 2019. The cuts came with $16 billion in liquidity injections via bond purchases and a dollar-rupee swap, which Malhotra called a rare Goldilocks period of sub-target inflation and strong growth.

Updated May 9