- Calls upon universities to actively engage students in Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue 2027, Nasha Mukt Abhiyaan and Yuva Connect Programme
Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports Raksha Khadse chaired a high-level meeting with Vice-Chancellors of 93 universities from across the country to strengthen the engagement of higher educational institutions with major youth-focused initiatives of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
The meeting brought together Vice-Chancellors of 40 Central Universities, 38 State Universities and 13 Deemed and Private Universities, along with representatives of NSU, Manipur and LNIPE, Gwalior. The meeting provided a platform to brief university leadership on the Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue 2027, Nasha Mukt Abhiyaan and Yuva Connect Programme and discuss their active engagement in these initiatives.
Addressing the Vice-Chancellors, Union MoS Raksha Khadse emphasised that building a Viksit Bharat is a collective responsibility and that schools, colleges and universities have an important role to play in this journey. Referring to the vision of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for Viksit Bharat @2047, she highlighted the importance of empowering young people with opportunities to lead, participate and contribute to nation-building.
She emphasised that schools and colleges are among the foundations of nation-building, providing young people with knowledge, values, skills and opportunities to participate meaningfully in society. She called upon university leadership to create an environment that encourages students to engage in national initiatives, community participation, leadership and constructive dialogue.
- On the Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue 2027
Union MoS Raksha Khadse highlighted that its diverse themes and tracks represent important pillars of the Viksit Bharat vision, giving young people platforms to contribute ideas, creativity and solutions across different areas of national development.
She encouraged universities to actively facilitate participation in VBYLD 2027, emphasising that participation can open an array of opportunities for young people, including exposure to leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship, creativity, dialogue and engagement with policymakers and experts.
The Minister also emphasised the role of educational institutions in strengthening awareness and youth-led action under the Nasha Mukt Abhiyaan and in connecting students with opportunities through the Yuva Connect Programme. She stressed that universities can help take youth initiatives beyond campuses and into communities through student participation and institutional partnerships.
Union MoS Raksha Khadse made an appeal to the Vice-Chancellors to ensure greater participation of their universities and students in VBYLD 2027 and to encourage young people to make full use of the opportunities available to them. She emphasised that active participation by educational institutions can help create a stronger ecosystem for youth leadership, social responsibility and nation-building.
The Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue 2027 is a national platform to identify, nurture and empower young leaders and provide them an opportunity to contribute ideas towards Viksit Bharat @2047. The initiative follows a grassroots-to-national journey and includes tracks such as the Viksit Bharat Challenge, Cultural Track, Design for Bharat, Hack for Social Cause, Youth Entrepreneurs Challenge and Youth Parliament. The National Dialogue will bring selected young participants together with policymakers, domain experts and national leaders, providing an avenue for young Indians to contribute to nation-building.
During the interaction, Vice-Chancellors who shared their views and participated in the discussion included Prof. Nilofer Khan, Vice-Chancellor, University of Kashmir; Prof. (Dr.) Diwakar Singh Rajput, Vice-Chancellor, Jiwaji University, Gwalior; Prof. Kalpana Sharma, Vice-Chancellor, Lakshmibai National Institute of Physical Education (LNIPE), Gwalior; Prof. Dibakar Chandra Deka, Vice-Chancellor, Mizoram University; Daljit Singh Chawdhary (IPS Retd.), Vice-Chancellor, National Sports University; and Prof. (Dr.) Suresh Gosavi, Vice-Chancellor, Savitribai Phule Pune University.
The meeting was attended by Shri Sunil Paliwal, IAS, Secretary, Department of Youth Affairs; Shri Salil Kumar, Director, MY Bharat; Shri Shiv Ratan, Joint Secretary, Department of Youth Affairs; and Shri Prashant Priya Gautam, Director, National Service Scheme (NSS), along with Vice-Chancellors and representatives of participating universities.
The meeting concluded with key takeaways and action points for strengthening university-level engagement with VBYLD 2027, Nasha Mukt Abhiyaan and Yuva Connect Programme and ensuring wider participation of young people.