Modi@8: From Demonetisation to Surgical Strikes to Ram Mandir, Key Dates in Narendra Modi’s Tenure

Prime Minister Narendra Modi completed eight years in power on May 26, 2022, dedicating his tenure, the longest for any non-Congress leader, to the country’s balanced development, social justice and social security.

In the last eight years, the Narendra Modi government has successfully delivered several schemes to directly benefit cross-sections of the society in terms of financial, healthcare and social security.

From his first swearing-in ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on May 26, 2014 to the demonetisation announcement on November 8, 2016 to the surgical strikes on terror camps to the ‘Howdy Modi!’ and ‘Namaste Trump’ events, here’s a timeline of key dates in Narendra Modi’s prime ministership:

1. May 26, 2014: Narendra Modi is sworn in as the 14th Prime Minister of India at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. In attendance are the PMs and heads of states of SAARC member nations, including then Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif
2. June 15-16, 2014: Modi makes his first foreign trip as Prime Minister to neighbouring Bhutan at the invitation of King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk and Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay
3. July 13-16, 2014: Modi heads to Brazil for his first multilateral visit as India’s PM to attend the sixth BRICS summit held in the beach city of Fortaleza
4. August 28, 2014: PM Modi launches Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, the world’s largest financial inclusion scheme, on August 28, 2014. Under the scheme, benefits like scholarships, subsidies, pensions, and COVID relief funds are credited to the bank accounts, including Jan Dhan Accounts, through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT)
5. September 1-2, 2014: PM Modi visits Japan, meets counterpart Shinzo Abe at Akasaka Palace in Tokyo
6. September 5, 2014: Modi holds bilateral talks with visiting Australian PM Tony Abbott
7. September 8, 2014: The PM visits Jammu and Kashmir to personally review the flood situation. He declares the floods a national level disaster and announces Rs 1,000 crore relief package
8. September 11, 2014: Modi chairs high-level meeting on Swachh Bharat, urges mass movements on pan-India cleanliness drive
9. September 17, 2014: PM Modi meets visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping in Ahmedabad. The two leaders sign three Gujarat-specific pacts. These include making Guangzhou and Ahmedabad sister cities, setting up industrial parks in Gujarat and an agreement between Guangdong province and the Gujarat government for development of cultural and social ties between the two provinces
10. September 19, 2014: Modi meets Microsoft co-founder and philanthropists Bill Gates and Melinda Gates. In an hour-long discussion, they discuss public sanitation, vaccines and health clinics
11. September 24, 2014: PM Modi joins ISRO chairman K Radhakrishan and other scientists as the Mars Orbiter spacecraft is successfully placed in the orbit of the Red Planet
12. September 25, 2014: Modi unveils the Make in India initiative that aims to make the country a global manufacturing hub
13. September 26, 2014: PM Modi heads to the US on a five-day visit at the invitation of President Barack Obama. His itinerary includes addressing the United National General Assembly. Before departing Modi invites Obama to be the chief guest at India’s Republic Day parade the following year, which is accepted
14. September 27, 2014: The Prime Minister delivers his first address to the United Nations General Assembly, says his government is prepared to engage in bilateral dialogue with Pakistan but says Islamabad must first create “appropriate environment” for it
15. September 28, 2014: Modi addresses thousands of Indian-Americans at New York’s iconic Madison Square Gardens, announcing plans to simplify immigration bureaucracy for Indians living abroad. The event, also attended by 30 US lawmakers, also included a dazzling Bollywood-style show
16. February 2015: The process to update the National Register of Citizens, an official record of bonafide Indian citizens living in Assam, begins two years after the Supreme Court ordered it to identify bonafide citizens and weed out illegal immigrants
17. May 9, 2015: The Prime Minister launches three Jan Suraksha schemes, including Rs 2 lakh accident cover at a premium of just Re 1 per month
18. The two insurance schemes — Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) and Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) — would provide insurance cover in the unfortunate event of death by any cause or disability due to an accident, whereas the pension scheme named Atal Pension Yojana (APY) would address old age income security needs
19. May 17-19, 2015: Modi undertakes official visits to China, Mongolia and South Korea
20. June 6, 2015: In Narendra Modi’s maiden visit to Bangladesh, New and Dhaka settle the 41-year-old boundary dispute. PM Modi also announces fresh line of credit of $2 billion to the neighbouring country
21. June 7, 2015: Modi receives the Bangladesh Liberation War honour on behalf of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The PM hands it over to Vajpayee’s family members on June 11
22. June 21, 2015: PM leads first International Yoga Day celebrations in New Delhi, practises asanas along with 35,000 participants during a mega event at Rajpath
23. June 25, 2015: Modi launches Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, which aims to ensure “housing for all by 2022″
24. July 6-8, 2015: PM embarks on visits to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan
25. July 10, 2015: Modi flies to Russia on three-day trip to attend BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summits, economic cooperation and counter-terrorism efforts top the agenda
26. July 13, 2015: Modi visits Tajikistan
27. February 28, 2016: The Prime Minister makes first mention of his aim to double farmers’ incomes at a rally in Uttar Pradesh
28. May 1, 2016: PM launches free LPG connection scheme named Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana to provide millions of households access to cooking gas cylinders without consumers having to pay a deposit to fuel retailers
29. September 29, 2016: India announces it carried out surgical strikes against terrorist launch pads across the Line of Control in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, inflicting “significant casualties”. The strikes were seen as retaliation for the deaths of 19 soldiers in a terrorist attack on an Indian Army camp in J&K’s Uri 10 days before
30. November 8, 2016: PM Narendra Modi in a surprise address to the nation at 8pm announces demonetization of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes. He also announces the launch of new Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 denomination notes
31. June 30, 2017: PM Modi and President Pranab Mukherjee symbolically press a buzzer to launch the India-wide implementation of the Goods and Services Tax at a special midnight session of Parliament
32. December 28, 2017: In keeping with its election promise, the BJP introduces the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill in Parliament
33. The bill criminalises instant triple talaq in all forms following a Supreme Court judgment in August that year which outlawed the practice and asked the government to frame a law within six months.
34. The Lok Sabha passes the bill the same day
35. December 31, 2017: The government publishes the first draft of the NRC
36. July 30, 2018: The Assam government releases the second NRC draft. Of the 3.29 crore who applied, 2.89 crore are declared genuine citizens. The draft NRC excludes over 40 lakh people
37. August 1, 2018: The Supreme Court rules that the Assam NRC was only a draft, and hence it cannot be the basis of any action by any authority against anyone
38. August 10, 2018: The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill which criminalises instant triple talaq is introduced in the Rajya Sabha but fails passage in the Upper House where the ruling BJP lacks the numbers
39. September 19, 2018: The Narendra Modi government promulgates the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Ordinance, 2018
40. January 8, 2019: Lok Sabha passes the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019 amid Opposition protests
41. According to the contentious Bill, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014 and facing religious persecution there will not be treated as illegal immigrants but given Indian citizenship.
42. January 10, 2019: The triple talaq ordinance is re-promulgated for the second time
43. February 3, 2019: PM launches and lays foundation stone for multiple development projects in Srinagar, Jammu and Leh
44. February 21, 2019: The triple talaq ordinance is re-promulgated for the third time
45. February 26, 2019: Indian warplanes destroy Jaish-e-Mohammed hideouts and camps deep inside enemy territory in Balakot to avenge killing of 40 CRPF personnel in the Pulwama terror attack.
46. Group Captain Abhinandan Varthaman downs an enemy jet during aerial combat with Pakistan but is forced to land in hostile territory. He is held captive for three days before being returned to India
47. February 29, 2019: The Prime Minister inaugurates the National War Memorial adjoining the iconic India Gate complex
48. May 23, 2019: Narendra Modi returns to power as Prime Minister for the second consecutive term as the BJP wins 303 seats in the Lok Sabha. Modi also wins his own re-election bid from Varanasi constituency
49. May 25, 2019: The triple talaq bill awaiting passage in the Rajya Sabha lapses with the dissolution of the Lok Sabha before national elections
50. May 30, 2019: Modi is sworn-in as Prime Minister for his second term at the Rashtrapati Bhavan
51. June 21, 2019: The government introduces a fresh bill to criminalise instant triple talaq
52. July 25, 2019: Lok Sabha passes the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019 which criminalises instant triple talaq with a jail term of three years
53. July 30, 2019: Modi government scores major victory as Rajya Sabha finally passes the triple talaq bill
54. August 5, 2019: Narendra Modi government moves presidential resolution in Rajya Sabha to repeal Article 370 which accorded special status to Jammu and Kashmir
55. Union Home Minister Amit Shah also moves the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019 which seeks to bifurcate the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh.
56. August 6, 2019: The Lok Sabha, too, passes the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill
57. August 9, 2019: President Ram Nath Kovind gives his assent to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act
58. August 31, 2019: The government releases the final version of the NRC, with over 9 lakh people in Assam left out of the list
59. September 6, 2019: India watches in heartbreak when Chandrayaan-2 mission’s Vikram lander crashes during a difficult landing near the southern pole of the lunar surface one-and-a-half months after take-off
60. In visuals that went viral, PM Modi consoles a visibly distraught K Sivan, the ISRO chairman
61. September 22, 2019: PM Modi, accompanied by US President Donald Trump, addresses a crowd of over 50,000 Indian-Americans at ‘Howdy Modi’ event in Houston
62. October 31, 2019: The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 comes into effect
63. November 9, 2019: In a landmark verdict into the politically sensitive Ram Janmbhoomi-Babri Masjid case, the Supreme Court paves the way for the construction of a Ram Temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya.
64. The apex court directs the Centre to allot an alternative 5-acre plot to the Sunni Waqf Board to build a new mosque at a “prominent” place in the holy town
65. December 11, 2019: Rajya Sabha approves the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, completing the legislative procedure to give Indian citizenship to non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh
66. February 24, 2020: US President Donald Trump visits India, addresses a public gathering with PM Modi at Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad as part of the ‘Namaste Trump’ event
67. March 24, 2020: Modi government announces a nationwide 21-day lockdown as India reports 11 deaths from Covid-19 and active cases zoom to 500
68. April 5, 2020: Citizens respond to PM Modi’s call and light diyas and candles to show solidarity with medical and frontline workers
69. April 14, 2020: Modi government extends Covid-19 lockdown until May 5
70. May 1, 2020: The government extends the Covid-19 lockdown for two more weeks starting May 4
71. May 7, 2020: Phase 1 of the Narendra Modi government’s Vande Bharat mission begins to bring home Indians stranded abroad amid the Covid pandemic
72. May 12, 2020: Modi announces the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan’ and declares Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package to save the lockdown-battered economy. The package focuses on tax breaks for small businesses as well as incentives for domestic manufacturing.
73. The combined package works out to roughly 10% of the GDP, making it among the most substantial in the world after the financial packages announced by Japan (21% of its GDP) and US (13%)
74. May 17, 2020: The Modi government extends Covid-19 lockdown till May 31
75. June 5, 2020: The government promulgates three farm bills — Farmer’s Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act; The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act; and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act
76. September 14, 2020: An ordinance on the three farm bills is brought to Parliament. It is passed in Lok Sabha and Rajya within a week
77. June 8, 2020: Modi government begins implementing phased reopening of India with Unlock 1.0, allows conditional opening of malls, hotels, restaurants and places of worship
78. July 1, 2020: Modi government brings into force Unlock 2.0 with conditional relaxation of night curfews, provisions for domestic flights and trains
79. July 17, 2020: International flights resume as Modi government establishes travel bubbles with France and the US
80. June 19, 2020: PM convenes all-party meeting two days after a violent face-off between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh which left 20 Indian Army personnel dead
81. July 3, 2020: In a surprise visit, Modi reaches Nimu in Ladakh to take stock of the border situation and interact with soldiers
82. August 1, 2020: Unlock 3.0 takes effect as government allows gyms to functions, revokes night curfew orders
83. August 5, 2020: PM Modi attends the bhoomipoojan of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya
84. August 14, 2020: PM Modi becomes the longest-serving non-Congress Prime Minister of India
85. September 25, 2020: Farmers across India come out in protest in response to a call by the All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC).
86. Protesters allege the farm laws will lead to the abolishment of the minimum support price (MSP) guaranteed by the government on select crops and leave farmers at the mercy of big corporates
87. September 26, 2020: The Shiromani Akali Dal quits the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance over the farm bills
88. September 27, 2020: The farm bills are given presidential assent and notified in the Gazette of India and become farm laws
89. September 30, 2020: Modi government issues Unlock 6.0 guidelines, allows multiplexes to open with 50% capacity from October 15. States are allowed to take a call on reopening schools
90. November 26, 2020: Farmers marching towards Delhi face water cannons, tear gas as police tried to disperse them at Haryana’s Ambala district
91. December 3, 2020: The Modi government holds first round of talks with representatives of farmers but the meeting remains inconclusive. Several rounds of unsuccessful talks are held in the next few months
92. December 9, 2020: Farmer leaders reject the Union government’s proposal to amend the three contentious laws
93. December 10, 2020: PM Modi lays the foundation stone of the new Parliament building, also performs the ground-breaking ceremony for the building which is expected to be completed by 2022
94. January 3, 2021: Drugs Controller General of India approves Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin for restricted emergency use in India, a day after Serum Institute of India gets approval for Covishield
95. January 12, 2021: The Supreme Court stays implementation of the farm laws; sets up a four-member committee to make recommendations on the legislations
96. January 16, 2021: PM Narendra Modi launches the world’s biggest vaccination drive as a sanitation worker gets the first dose of Covid-19 vaccine in the country
97. January 26, 2021: On Republic Day, thousands of protestors clash with police during the tractor parade called by farmer unions. At Red Fort, property is damaged. A protester dies in the chaos
98. March 1, 2021: India launches second phase of Covid-19 vaccination, PM Modi too takes his first dose
99. October 29, 2021: India achieves major milestone in Covid-19 vaccination drive, surpassing the mark of 100 crore doses
100. PM Modi hails the moment as “triumph of Indian science” and visits Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in New Delhi to thank with healthcare workers
101. November 19, 2021: Prime Minister Narendra Modi announces the repeal of the farm laws
102. January 1, 2022: PM releases the 10th instalment of financial benefits under PM-KISAN scheme
103. January 15, 2022: Modi interacts with start-up founders from across India, announces January 16 as National Start-Up Day
104. January 17, 2022: PM delivers a ‘State of the World’ special address at the World Economic Forum’s Davos Agenda
105. January 20, 2022: Modi delivers keynote address at national launch ceremony of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav which marks the celebration of 75 years of India’s Independence
106. March 3, 2022: PM Modi participates in a virtual meeting of the Quad leaders along with US President Joe Biden and the prime ministers of Japan and Australia
107. April 11, 2022: Modi holds virtual meeting with US President Joe Biden, hopes ongoing talks between Russia and Ukraine pave the way for peace in the conflict-torn country
108. April 19, 2022: Modi, along with WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and Mauritius PM Pravind Jugnauth performs ground-breaking ceremony for WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine in Gujarat’s Jamnagar
109. April 22, 2022: PM Modi and his visiting British counterpart Boris Johnson hold extensive talks to further expand cooperation in areas of defence, trade and clean energy
110. May 2, 2022: PM holds talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin
111. May 3, 2022: Modi holds talks with Danish PM Frederiksen in Copenhagen
112. May 4, 2022: PM holds productive talks with French President Macron in Paris
113. May 24, 2022: Prime Minister Modi and leaders of the United States, Japan and Australia attend the second in-person meeting of Quad leaders in Tokyo

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