I'm not an ambitious person, there is no ambition in my life. I have a mission in my life. And my mission is to serve my country. And when I am working for my state, it means I am working for my country, or my nation.

Much of India that we dream of still lies ahead of us: housing, power, water and sanitation for all; bank accounts and insurance for every citizen; connected and prosperous villages; and, smart and sustainable cities.

I do take pride in saying that in spite of being in public life for so long, there is not a single case against me, not even for wrongly parking a scooter or driving on the wrong side.

Democracy is our commitment. It is our great legacy, a legacy we simply cannot compromise. Democracy is in our DNA.

I can say that out of 365 days, I manage to do yoga on at least 300 days.

I am the son of a freedom fighter, and a son of a freedom fighter automatically imbibes the value of democracy.

I have worked hard since my childhood and worked as a labourer. I put my mind and heart into it.

The world may be driven by the same ancient impulses. We will continue to see human struggles and successes. We will witness human glory and tragedies.

If I had chosen the populist course, it would have been a breach of the trust placed in me by the people.

I draw pleasure in governance, in doing new things and bringing people together. That pleasure is all I need from life.

E-governance is easy governance, effective governance, and also economic governance. E-governance paves the way for good governance.

My government is working for the common man. Our priority is the poor of the country. We want good governance through a dynamic and seamless government.

In the political system, we are a team; politics and bureaucracy, we are a team. The politicians, bureaucrats and the people, we are a team.

I always say the strength of democracy lies in criticism. If there is no criticism, that means there is no democracy. And if you want to grow, you must invite criticism. And I want to grow; I want to invite criticism.

People's blessings give you the power to work tirelessly. The only thing required is commitment.

Unless and until you inspire the people, you will not get results. Imposition will never give you the results. Inspiration will always give you the results.

I believe mutual respect for one another and cooperation should be the basis for relationships with foreign nations.

We walk together, we move together, we think together, we resolve together, and together we take this country forward.

The diversity of India, of our civilization, is actually a thing of beauty, which is something we are extremely proud of.

A national festival is an occasion to refine and rebuild the national character.

The world has crafted a beautiful balance of collective action - common but differentiated responsibility and respective capabilities.

Indians felt despondent about Indian governance. Changing that atmosphere of gloom was a very challenging task, and I faced many difficulties in rectifying the situation and bringing back confidence and hope.

India is a democracy; it is in our DNA.

We should work with the principle that a work that can be done at a lower level should never be escalated to a higher level.

Our vision and commitment is towards the country's progress, its place in the world and the happiness of its people.

The pace at which people are taking to digital technology defies our stereotypes of age, education, language and income.

The government's job is good governance for everybody. My government will make policies; if you fit into it, come on board, or stay where you are. My job is not to spoon-feed anyone.

We will explore the mysteries of science and harness the power of technology and innovation. We will realise the opportunities of the digital world. Our youth will learn more from - and with - each other.

I don't carry the burden of the past or the madness of the future. I live in the present.

The power and energy sectors are the biggest constituents of the infrastructure sector. If you ignore them, no development will happen.

We will naturally pursue our goals on the strength of our own resources, skills and enterprise. But, we know that we will be more successful when we do this in partnership with the world.

Tourism provides employment to the poorest of the poor. Gram seller earns something, auto-rickshaw driver earns something, pakoda seller earns something, and tea seller also earns something.

For me, my secularism is, India first. I say, the philosophy of my party is 'Justice to all. Appeasement to none.' This is our secularism.

We must ensure that technology is accessible, affordable, and adds value.

If you call yourself a leader, then you have to be decisive. If you're decisive, then you have the chance to be a leader. These are two sides to the same coin.

I come from a poor family, I have seen poverty. The poor need respect, and it begins with cleanliness.

Our constitution is a ray of hope: H for harmony, O for Opportunity, P for people's participation and E for equality.

Good governance with good intentions is the hallmark of our government. Implementation with integrity is our core passion.

Social media is reducing social barriers. It connects people on the strength of human values, not identities.

The fault lines are shifting from the boundaries of nations into the web of our societies and the streets of our cities. And, terrorism and extremism are a global force that are larger than their changing names, groups, territories and targets.

We would like a stable policy framework, and whatever incentives and tax structures are there should be made known to investors upfront. There should be credibility, clarity and continuity in both policy formulation and its implementation.

I will only say that many freedom fighters of India found their calling in the institutions of Britain. And many makers of modern India, including several of my distinguished predecessors, from Jawaharlal Nehru to Dr. Manmohan Singh, passed through their doors.

Nobody is above the law. Imagine if there allegations against Modi and he is the Prime Minister. Should the case not be pursued just because he has become the PM. It should not be so that it should be stopped. I am not above the law.

When you think of the exponential speed and scale of expansion of social media or a service, you have to believe that it is equally possible to rapidly transform the lives of those who have long stood on the margins of hope.

We want to free our citizens from the burden of excessive paper documents in every office. We want paperless transactions. We will set up a digital locker for every citizen to store personal documents that can be shared across departments.

I'm a nationalist. I'm a patriot. Nothing is wrong. I'm a born Hindu. Nothing is wrong. So, I'm a Hindu nationalist, so yes, you can say I'm a Hindu nationalist because I am a born Hindu, I'm patriotic, so nothing is wrong in it.

When I came to Delhi and noticed an insider view, I felt what it was, and I was surprised to see it. It seemed as if dozens of separate governments are running at the same time in one main government. It appeared that everyone has its own fiefdom.

We should pass the U.N.'s Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism. At least it will clearly establish whom you view as a terrorist and whom you don't. We need to delink terrorism from religion - to isolate terrorists who use this interchange of arguments between terrorism and religion.

One of the peculiarities of Delhi is that the term 'reform' is associated only with passing of laws in Parliament. In fact, the most important reforms are those needed, without new laws, at various level of the government, in work practices and procedures.

Whatever work you do, you think are you doing this for the good of the nation? That's the basic training. The other basic training is discipline. Your life should be disciplined. The other thing they say is what work you get, do it well.