Youths need to take leadership roles from student days, say experts at Youth 20 Summit

ASSAM: From student activists contributing to evolution of democracy in the country to leading marginalised communities to enter the mainstream political landscape, the important role of youths in shaping the future of the nation was stressed by experts at Youth 20 Summit here.

They also underlined the need to include the youths from the economically-weaker sections, who are left out of the higher educational institutions, in chalking out the role of youth in the country’s formation. They were speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Shared Future: Youth in Democracy and Governance’ as part of Y20 inception meet here on Tuesday.

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Highlighting the role of youths in different social and political movements of independent India, Ankur Jyoti Bhuyan, assistant professor at Kumar Bhaskar Varma Sanskrit and Ancient Studies, said, "The young leaders of these movements had later emerged as mass political leaders. Student activists have contributed to how democracy has emerged in India."

He cited the example of incumbent Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who was involved in student politics himself and is among the top BJP leaders of the country now. Stressing on importance of campus politics, another panellist Abhinav Prakash, who teaches Economics at the Sri Ram College of Commerce in Delhi, said, "Student politics in colleges and universities is vital so that we have leadership ready for the future."

There might be some disturbances at times associated with student politics, but these have to be tackled so that the students have an early start with politics, he added. Prakash also maintained that there been a ‘deepening and widening’ of democracy in India with more communities, which were earlier marginalised, becoming involved in decision-making processes and governance.

#Y20 is a brilliant way to amplify the voices of young people. This Summit is significant because it is being held amongst the world largest youth population & the worlds largest democracy; there can be no better place as unique as this.

-Sh @ianuragthakur @IndiaY20 @g20org pic.twitter.com/dqZQiVljuZ

— Office of Mr. Anurag Thakur (@Anurag_Office) February 7, 2023

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"More deprived communities are being empowered and they are led by their youths in this process of being more involved," he added. Prakash also pointed that the focus on youths and their issues cannot be centred around those pursuing degrees or making careers, but must also involved those who are earning a livelihood from a young age.

"The discussion on youth cannot be on the students only. The youth working in brick kilns, farms, etc., must also be involved," he said. Mita Nath Bora, a member of Assam Youth Commission, also participating in the discussion, said youth of today are facing 'complex challenges and they are addressing them also'. There is a need for more political engagement of the youth, she stressed.