Narendra Modi is the present Chief Minister of Gujarat. Modi is a member of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and an active politician from an early age. Narendra Modi was selected to direct the election campaign in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh by the leader of the BJP, Lal Krishna Advani. He became Gujarat`s Chief Minister in October 2001 when his predecessor Keshubhai Patel resigned. Since 7th October 2001, Modi has been the Chief Minister of Gujarat. He was promoted to the office following the defeat of the BJP in the elections. In December 2002, he won re-election as Chief Minister with 126 seats in the 182-member assembly.

Early Life of Narendra Modi
Narendra Modi was born on 17th September 1950, to a middle class family in Vadhnagar in the Mehsana district of Gujarat. During his student life, he displayed influential leadership qualities, and this was clearly seen when he successfully set up a new chapter of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad which was a powerful national student body. After post-graduating in political science, he entered social life right at the beginning of his career, in the early 1970s. He joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh as a young man in the year 1974. After that he became a full-time worker and organiser for it. During his engagement with RSS, he plunged into the anti-corruption movement. In the early1980s, he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party. He was the bridge between the RSS and the BJP.

Political Career of Narendra Modi
Narendra Modi was recognised as the master planner between 1988 and 1995, who had successfully carried out the necessary groundwork for making BJP the ruling party of the state. The responsibility of organizing two crucial national events were entrusted to Narendra Modi during this period, the Somnath to Ayodhya Rath Yatra of Advani and a similar march from Kanyakumari to the troubled Kashmir in north. In the beginning, he was believed to be a back-room operator for the political party. He was made the National Secretary of the party in the year 1995, in charge of 5 major states in India. He was asked to head the government of Gujarat in the turmoil period (2001) of Gujarat, as the state was undergoing problems because of several natural calamities including the massive Gujarat Earthquake in January 2001.

In order to compensate for economic losses, Modi re-organised the Government`s administrative structure. It was during his headship Gujarat registered the highest growth rate among all the states in India with a GDP growth rate of over 10%. Narendra Modi was credited by the Gujarat Government for reducing the fiscal deficiency of the state treasury by 50% and reducing the losses of the Gujarat State Electricity Board. It is his initiative with which the availability of electricity in many parts of rural Gujarat was increased in over 5,000 villages. Successful rising of the height of the Narmada Dam from 95 to 110.64 metres is one of the most substantial accomplishments of his government that has been resulted in increased irrigation, water supplies and hydroelectric power.

Awards received by Narendra Modi
Narendra Modi has been awarded by India Today as the Best Chief Minister twice in 3 years. Modi is considered front-runner in party`s leadership among the next generation of politicians.

He was conferred with The Asian Winner of the fDi Personality of the Year Award in 2009 by fDi Magazine. The award was however withdrawn and awarded to the Gujarat state instead.