PM Modi to spend his 68th birthday today in Varanasi, will inaugurate projects and interact with kids 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi celebrates his 68th birthday today. The Prime Minister decided to spend his birth anniversary visiting his parliamentary constituency, Varanasi where he is scheduled to inaugurate development projects worth over Rs 500 crore.

Born on September 17, 1950, Narendra Damodardas Modi was born to a Gujarati family in Vadanagar, Gujarat.

PM Modi was introduced to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh at the tender age of eight when he used to help his father with selling tea and later on had a tea-stall of his own to support his family.

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His humble background did not deter him from fanning his dreams, he continued working towards honing his political journey.

PM Modi had a long-standing association with the RSS in Gujarat. His big political break came when he was assigned to the Bhartiya Janata Party in the year 1985. He went to hold numerous positions within the party until he was named the general secretary in 2001.

In the wake of Gujarat Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel's ill-health, Modi was handed over the reigns of the state in the year 2001; he became the 14th Chief Minister of Gujarat -- a journey that spanned over 14 years and came to an end in the year 2014 with him taking over the Prime Minister of the country.

Under his leadership, the BJP won the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. It was the first time when a political party managed to form the government with a clear majority, sans alliance, since 1984.

As the Chief Minister of Gujarat, his leadership was hailed for encouraging development and economic reforms in the state, however, the Modi-led government has been criticised for its weak agenda on poverty alleviation, farmers' welfare, health and education -- areas which PM Modi's leadership has categorically tried to address and reform in the past four years.

"Even if one child falls in a borewell, the entire country gets worried; we must generate more awareness about hundreds of children who are unable to survive due to lack of primary health care facilities," the Prime Minister once stated.

On his birthday today, the prime minister decided to spend the day launching development projects for the people of Varanasi and interacting with childrenand students.

The prime minister is known to have utmost love for children and is often seen alluding to his childhood days and anecdotes during his speeches.

"I too was naughty as a child & played pranks. The child within us has to be kept alive because that child keeps us alive," PM Modi noted during his address on the occasion of Teachers' Day in 2014.

On his birthday, PM Modi will also meet with students at Kashi Vidyapeeth and interactwith children at the Diesel Locomotive Works (DLW) campus.