Narendra Modi

Best of BS Opinion: Sebi reforms to make things easier for investors

From Sebi's investor-friendly rule changes and PM Modi's West Asia tour to debates on power grid reform, shrimp exports and a Zomato biography, here's today's Best of BS Opinion.

Modi sounds poll bugle in Bengal, Assam; flags illegal immigration

PM hits out at TMC & Congress over the illegal immigrant issue; Opposition accuses him of neglecting other concerns in both states

Western approaches: PM Modi's three-nation tour has created useful momentum

The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (Cepa) is the second FTA signed between India and a West Asian nation - the first being with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2022

PM Modi lays foundation stone of ₹10,601 cr fertiliser plant in Assam

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday laid the foundation stone of a Rs 10,601-crore brownfield ammonia-urea plant in Dibrugarh district of Assam. The Assam Valley Fertiliser and Chemical Company Ltd (AVFCCL) will have an annual urea production capacity of 12.7 lakh metric tonnes, and the project is scheduled for commissioning in 2030. In July this year, AVFCCL was incorporated at Namrup in Dibrugarh district. A new plant within the existing premises of the Brahmaputra Valley Fertiliser Corp Ltd (BVFCL) was approved by the Union Cabinet in March this year. AVFCCL is a joint venture among the Assam government, Oil India, National Fertilisers Ltd (NFL), Hindustan Urvarak & Rasayan Ltd (HURL) and BVFCL.

PM begins interaction with students at Pariksha Pe Charcha event in Assam

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday morning set sail on river Brahmaputra on a cruise ship and interacted with students during a 'Pariksha Pe Charcha' programme on the second day of his Assam visit. A total of 25 students from various schools of Assam are taking part in the event. Modi will stay for around 45 minutes aboard the three-deck 'M V Charaidew 2', officials said. The Prime Minister was seen on the upper deck of the ship, interacting with the students. He arrived at the Guwahati Gateway Terminal of the Inland Water Transport (IWT), inaugurated recently by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and moved to the ship along the floating bridge. Security has been heightened along the entire area with the River Police, NDRF and SDRF personnel patrolling the river since early morning, the officials said. Ferry services on river Brahmaputra have been suspended for two days since Saturday in the wake of Modi's visit.

PM Modi inaugurates ₹4,000-crore new terminal at Guwahati airport

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated the Rs 4,000-crore new terminal of Guwahati's Lokapriya Gopinath Bardoloi International Airport, which has been designed to reflect Assam's natural heritage and cultural ethos. Touted as the country's first "nature-themed airport", the new terminal will be able to handle 13.1 million passengers per annum, officials said. The total cost of the project is Rs 5,000 crore, including Rs 1,000 crore earmarked specifically for Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) facilities, they said. The project has been developed by Guwahati International Airport Ltd, with operations led by Adani Airport Holdings Limited (AAHL), they added. Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani said the new terminal will serve as a catalyst for regional and industrial development, strengthening Guwahati's role as an emerging economic gateway beyond its tourism potential. After the inauguration, Modi toured the new terminal. He also examined the model of the airport,

BJP correcting mistakes Cong kept making in northeast for decades: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday attacked the Congress for neglecting Assam and the northeast during its rule, and asserted that the BJP government was correcting mistakes the grand old party kept making in the region for decades. Addressing a rally after inaugurating a new terminal of the Guwahati airport, Modi alleged that the development of Assam and the northeast was never a part of the Congress agenda. The Congress gave protection to infiltrators who grabbed forests and land, threatening the security and identity of Assam... The BJP governemnt has been correcting mistakes the Congress kept making for decades in the northeast, the PM asserted. Modi said the Election Commission started the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls to ensure infiltrators are kept out of the poll process, but deshdrohis' (traitors) were trying to protect them. The Centre is taking strict steps to stop infiltration, he said. The Prime Minister said development under the BJP's ...

Modi's report card in Northeast extremely poor: Assam Congress chief

Hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticised the Congress for allegedly neglecting Assam, state party chief Gaurav Gogoi on Saturday hit back, claiming that the prime minister's report card in the Northeast was "extremely poor" across sectors. Gogoi, who is also the Deputy Leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha, slammed the ruling party, saying that public sector undertakings are shutting their shops one after another during the present government's regime. Earlier in the day, Modi accused the Congress of ignoring Assam and the Northeast during its rule and asserted that the BJP-led government was correcting mistakes made by the opposition party over decades. "Modi's report card as PM is extremely poor in almost every sector in Assam and the Northeast, including industrial development, addressing unemployment issues and generation of employment," he told reporters here. Over the past 11 years, public sector undertakings in Assam have been shut down one after another, Gogoi

Ahead of Assam polls, Modi reviews party preparedness at BJP's state HQ

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the Assam BJP headquarters in Guwahati on Saturday evening to chair a strategic meeting with about 280 leaders of the party, with an eye on next year's assembly polls. Modi reached the Vajpayee Bhawan in Basistha area of the city after leading a massive 3.8-km-long roadshow from Sarusajai. He is scheduled to hold a meeting with party leaders during the visit, state BJP president Dilip Saikia earlier told PTI. The Vajpayee Bhawan was inaugurated by BJP president JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah in October 2022, and this is Modi's first visit to it. State BJP spokesperson Dewan Dhruba Jyoti Maral earlier said 280 leaders would be present at the closed-door meeting. The invitees include the party's ex-state presidents, former and incumbent MPs, ministers and MLAs. The PM arrived in Guwahati on a two-day tour of the state in the afternoon. He unveiled a statue of the state's first CM Gopinath Bordoloi, and a new terminus of the airport u

Modi's Bengal rally speech ignored Matuas' citizenship concerns: TMC

The Trinamool Congress on Saturday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech at the Taherpur rally in West Bengal showed his "lack of concern" for the Matuas, who have been facing uncertainties over deletion of names post publication of the draft electoral rolls under the SIR. TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh also claimed that the prime minister did not utter a single word about the alleged harassment of Bengali-speaking people in BJP-ruled states. "Modi's speech lacked vision and responsibility. He did not address the concerns of the Matuas," he told reporters. For the Matuas, a Dalit Hindu refugee community which migrated from Bangladesh over decades following religious persecution, the first state-wide Special Intensive Revision (SIR) since 2002 has created anxieties among voters over identity and citizenship. The names of over 58,20,898 people have been excluded from the draft electoral rolls under SIR, reducing West Bengal's electorate from 7.66 crore to 7.08 .

PM Modi to unveil Rs 10,600-crore fertiliser plant in Assam on Sunday

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Sunday lay the foundation stone for a Rs 10,600-crore brownfield ammonia-urea plant in Dibrugarh district of Assam, giving a fillip to the fertiliser requirement of the entire region. Modi arrived in Assam on Saturday on a two-day trip, during which he is set to unveil multiple projects worth Rs 15,600 crore, around three months before the state is due to go for assembly polls. On the second day of his visit, the PM will lay the foundation stone for a new brownfield ammonia-urea fertiliser project at Namrup within the existing premises of Brahmaputra Valley Fertiliser Corp Ltd (BVFCL), according to an official release by the Prime Minister's Office. "Furthering PM's vision of farmers' welfare, the project, with an estimated investment of over Rs 10,600 crore, will meet fertiliser requirements of Assam and neighbouring states, reduce import dependence, generate substantial employment and catalyse regional economic development," it added. The PMO

Like Brahmaputra, growth flows uninterrupted under double-engine govt: PM

Addressing a gathering, PM Modi said modern, world-class airport facilities open up new possibilities and opportunities for any state and they become pillars of a state's growing self-confidence

In PM's absence, Bengal Guv launches highway projects worth Rs 3,200 cr

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose on Saturday unveiled national highway projects worth Rs 3,200 crore in West Bengal with an aim to boost economic activities and tourism in the state. Bose officially launched the projects from Netaji Park in Taherpur area of Nadia district instead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was initially supposed to unveil the development projects from the ground, but whose helicopter failed to land in the area on account of insufficient visibility due to dense fog over the region. Modi was forced to return to the Kolkata airport from where he later addressed the crowd in a virtual audio mode. Bose inaugurated the 66.7 km-long four-laning of the Barajaguli-Krishnanagar section of NH-34 in Nadia district, while he laid the foundation stone for the four-laning of the Barasat-Barajaguli stretch of the highway in the adjacent district of North 24 Parganas. It has remained our constant endeavour to ensure modern connectivity to those far-flung areas of Benga

Bihar election results have opened doors for BJP's win in Bengal: PM Modi

Addressing a rally in West Bengal, PM Modi accused the TMC of shielding infiltrators, alleging appeasement politics; he also promised to end 'maha jungle raj' in the state

US trade chief criticises India, EU as negotiations drag on into 2026

He also said negotiations with India that began earlier this year still haven't resulted in an agreement - noting that the US had concluded deals with a slew of other partners

PM Modi to address 1st rally in Bengal today after draft voter list release

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit West Bengal's Nadia district on Saturday, where he will inaugurate national highway projects and address a public rally, amid heightened political tensions over the ongoing SIR exercise in the state. This would be Modi's first visit to the state since the draft SIR rolls were published, and the third in the past five months. The Prime Minister, political observers said, is scheduled to address the growing unease amongst the Matua community members post the publication of the draft rolls from his strategically located BJP rally venue in Taherpur area of Ranaghat, not far from the heartland of the Namasudra Hindu community in adjacent Bongaon. In the process, Modi is likely to sound the BJP's bugle for the assembly polls, which are due in the state early next year and finalise the roadmap for the party's big push for the crucial elections. The people of West Bengal are benefiting from numerous pro-people initiatives of the central ..

PM Modi to arrive in Assam for 2-day visit; set to unveil airport terminal

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to arrive here on Saturday for a two-day visit to Assam during which he will launch several projects, interact with BJP workers and address public meetings, officials said. The PM will unveil an 80-foot-tall statue of Assam's first chief minister Gopinath Bardoloi, sculpted by eminent artist Ram Sutar, outside the new terminal of the airport named after him, they said. Sutar, who died on Wednesday at the age of 101 years, had also sculpted a 125-ft-high statue of legendary Ahom general Lachit Barphukan, who had defeated the Mughals, at Jorhat. This was also unveiled by the PM in March 2024. After unveiling the statue, he will inaugurate the Rs 4,000-crore new terminal of the Lokapriya Gopinath Bardoloi International Airport here and spend around 15 minutes there, the officials said. The Prime Minister will also address a public meeting just outside the terminal building on Saturday. After the meeting, Modi will proceed for a road show towa

PM Narendra Modi to inaugurate new airport terminal in Guwahati on Saturday

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to pay a two-day visit to Assam from Saturday, during which he will inaugurate and lay foundation stones for several projects and address public meetings. The PM, inter alia, will inaugurate the Rs 4,000 crore new terminal of the Guwahati airport, which, he said, will give a major boost to Assam's infrastructure. During the visit, he will also pay homage to the martyrs of the Assam movement, a six-year-long violent anti-foreigner agitation that began in 1979. 'I will reach Guwahati, Assam tomorrow, 20th December. In the afternoon, the new terminal building of the Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport will be inaugurated. This is a major boost to Assam's infrastructure. Increased capacity means better Ease of Living' and a boost for commerce as well as tourism,' Modi said in a post on X. Replying to the post, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the people of Assam were eagerly awaiting his arrival and the inauguration of

PM Modi leads X engagement with 8 of India's 10 most-liked tweets

According to X's new "Most Liked" feature, no other politician's posts featured among the top 10 most-liked tweets in the country

PM suffering from 'acronym-itis': Congress after passage of G RAM G Bill

A day after Parliament passed the VB-G RAM G Bill that seeks to replace the 20-year-old MGNREGA, the Congress on Friday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying he is suffering from a "case of acute acronym-itis". Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh posted on X a cartoon representation on X which read: "All new A.C.R.O.N.Y.M MANTRALAYA - Administrative Commission for Renaming Old Schemes -- New Yet Meaningless". "The PM is suffering from a case of acute acronym-itis," Ramesh said in his post accompanying the cartoon. His dig came a day after the passage of two bills in Parliament with catchy acronyms -- Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill and the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill. The VB-G RAM G Bill was passed by the Rajya Sabha with a voice vote, hours after the Lok Sabha cleared it on Thursday, amid strong protests by the opposition