On this day four years ago, Narendra Modi took oath of office as the 14th Prime Minister of India. As the country braces for the Lok Sabha elections a year from now, the Prime Minister took to Twitter to post a message of thanks for the people.

“On this day in 2014, we began our journey of working towards India’s transformation,” wrote the 67-year-old PM.

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“Over the last four years, development has become a vibrant mass movement, with every citizen feeling involved in India’s growth trajectory. 125 crore Indians are taking India to great heights!” he wrote.

The PM then expressed his gratitude to all.

“I bow to my fellow citizens for their unwavering faith in our Government. This support and affection is the biggest source of motivation and strength for the entire Government. We will continue to serve the people of India with the same vigour and dedication,” the PM emphasised.

He then posted a pictorial representation of the achievements of his government, while assuring the people that for his government, it is “always India First”.

“With the best intent and complete integrity, we have taken futuristic and people-friendly decisions that are laying the foundations of a New India,” wrote Modi concluding his posts with the hashtag #SaafNiyatSahiVikas.

In a historic first for India, Modi took oath on 26 May 2014 in the presence of the heads of all of the countries who are members of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). The highlight of the ceremony was the presence of then Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, whose acceptance of Modi’s invite made news around the world and attracted both praise in criticism by other political parties in their respective countries.

Following his swearing-in, Modi personally met all of the dignitaries.

But four years later, the strength of the ties with the SAARC nations failed to match the hopes raised at the swearing-in ceremony and worsened at least in one case.

While Pakistan launched a series of terror attacks on Indian military establishments and relentlessly continues to violate ceasefire across the LoC and the IB, India’s ties with Nepal were strained due to the Madhesi protests.

New Delhi’s relations with Kathmandu were eventually ‘reset’ after Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and Modi’s visit to each other’s countries in a span of just over 30 days. Yet India’s ties with Pakistan remain practically frozen ever since Pakistani-sponsored terrorists attacked Indian Air Force base in Pathankot in January 2016, just a week after PM Modi paid a surprise visit to Sharif in Pakistan.