New Delhi: Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Sunday said that youth from regions like Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh play a crucial role in strengthening the country’s social and cultural fabric.
His remarks came while interacting with the youth contingent from these Union territories at his residence here.
The contingent comprises 52 youth from Jammu and Kashmir and 31 from Ladakh, who are in the national capital to participate in the National Youth Festival-Viksit Bharat Young Leaders’ Dialogue 2026, being organised by MY Bharat, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
Singh, the Minister of State for Personnel, said that the future of a developed India rests on the energy, innovation and leadership of its young citizens.
He highlighted that the Viksit Bharat Young Leaders’ Dialogue is not merely a festival, but a nation-building platform where ideas, creativity and leadership converge.
Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision, the minister said that today’s youth are not just beneficiaries of development but active stakeholders and co-creators in India’s journey towards becoming a developed nation by 2047.
Singh emphasised the importance of national integration and unity, stating that youth from regions like Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh play a crucial role in strengthening the country’s social and cultural fabric.
He encouraged the participants to use the festival to engage with peers from across India, appreciate the country’s diversity, and present youth-led solutions in areas ranging from innovation and governance to culture and social development.
Singh said that these youth from Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh would represent their regions with distinction at the national level platform, and return as ambassadors of positive change, carrying forward the spirit of “Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat” and the transformative vision of Viksit Bharat.
The minister is a Lok Sabha member from Jammu and Kashmir’s Udhampur constituency.
The three-day national event, being held at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, culminates on January 12, when the youth contingent will also have an opportunity to interact with Prime Minister Modi.
The National Youth Festival is organised annually to commemorate the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda on January 12, observed as National Youth Day.
