But this is one aspect of two-year Modi Government. Much has changed during 24 months. Policy paralysis and the pall of gloom that hung over economy have lifted. The BJP-led NDA government is able to tame inflation and public finances have been strengthened. Still much is desired to be done; private investment and jobs are flagging and acche din still seems far away.

On plus side there have been no large-scale corruption and scandal at the centre. It is fair to say that crony capitalism is not as rampant under NDA as it was under UPA. On the minus side, the economy is lacking in many spheres. The Modi government has not taken bold steps for economic reforms; ease of doing business has improved marginally.

Two years is too short a time to take stock of a government that has unveiled a number of pronouncements. But the contrast between Modi and his predecessor Dr Manmohan Singh is apparent in many ways. Dr Singh was mocked for his silence, while Modi is being lampooned for talking too much.

The roll out of schemes such as the Swachh Bharat Mission, Smart Cities Mission, Digital India, Startup India and Make in India is well intentioned. Just how much management muscle the government has to implement these schemes is a big question.

Having visited 40 countries as the Prime Minister, Modi has placed himself well on the world map, successfully courted US as an ally, displayed inspiration in befriending Japan and build bridges with Iran. But tension with Pakistan persists, Nepal is no longer a tame neighbour and relations with China remain edgy.

In a survey conducted recently, more than two thirds approved of the government’s foreign policy initiatives and over three fourths felt the Pakistan policy was either courageous or realistic. The China policy similarly had approval ratings.

The past two years have also been peppered to with controversial events. The killings of scholar M M Kalburi, lynching of a Muslim in Dadri for allegedly storing beef, the return of Sahitya Akademi awards by eminent writers, protesting intolerance and student unrest in university campuses have prompted probing questions from intelligentsia and the political opposition.

On the second anniversary of the NDA, Modi remains its USP. What is striking is the PM’s ability to keep the public mood upbeat despite worrying inflationary trends and slow job creation. The PM did not make big announcements in his second year. Instead, the government came up with schemes having more direct public appeal — to provide 24x7 electricity in rural areas, housing for all accidental deaths and life insurance.

“Things have started moving in infrastructure sector now and there is more stress in rural sector. There was a stalemate in the roads, pots, railways and energy sectors during the previous UPA government, which has now improved “, says Bhartruhari Mehtab, a Biju Janata Dal MP. “But there are unresolved issues, Employment generation is yet to take off. Another challenge is that inequality is growing”, the BJD leader says.

The year also saw a tussle between the executive/legislature and the judiciary over latter’s overreach. It came in the backdrop of the Supreme Court slamming the government over its handling of draught, striking down the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, and restoring the ousted Congress government in Uttarakhand.

The government has nonetheless, managed to push some vital reforms bills, including the Insolvency and Bankrupt Code to make it easier to business and the Real state Act to protect homebuyers and also developers.

One of the biggest achievements has been to provide a corruption free government. Many intellectuals, however, remained unconvinced. “The Modi government has accelerated the decline of education, health and lack of recruitment in universities. It’s the continuation of the same Congress mediocrity”, said social scientist Shiv Visvanathan.

Three months in office, the PM promised to remove “financial untouchability” through the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna aimed at providing banking access to all. A mother later, cheered on by some of India’s top billionaires, Modi unveiled the Make in India initiative to turn India a manufacturing power house, vowing to remove bureaucratic sloth and make the country more investment friendly. The two schemes have since come to define the NDA government’s reform model –push investment but also financially empower the poor to make growth more inclusive. Launched on September 25, 2014, the Make in India campaign is as much an invitation to domestic and foreign companies as a promise to pull the country from botton of the World Bank’s ease of doing business index. India now ranks 130, up from 142 in 2014.

The Jan Dhan scheme, arguably the world’s largest financial inclusion plan, has enabled 210 million people, most of them from the bottom of the lower income strata, to open bank accounts yielding combined deposit base of Rs.36,000 crore.

Completing two years in office in 2006, Manmohan Singh had said “Running a government is not difficult. Building a nation certainly is”. Modi may want to heed his predecessor’s worlds. (IPA Service)