A region famed for its painted havelis and globe-trotting business dynasties took centre stage in Jaipur on Saturday, 24 October 2026, as Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma addressed the Shekhawati Heritage and Development Summit — urging the community's entrepreneurs to bring the next generation into the fold of industry and enterprise.

The call to entrepreneurs: bring youth into business

Speaking at the summit, CM Sharma declared that the hard work, skill, and entrepreneurial spirit of Rajasthanis is recognised across the world — 'राजस्थानियों की मेहनत, हुनर और उद्यमशीलता की पहचान पूरी दुनिया में है' ['The diligence, talent, and entrepreneurship of Rajasthanis is known the world over']. His central message was direct: that promise means nothing unless the younger generation is actively drawn into business and industry.

He stressed that encouraging youth and creating pathways to entrepreneurship and job creation is not optional — it is essential. The emphasis on youth-led enterprise signals a deliberate push to convert the region's cultural prestige into economic momentum.

Shekhawati's heritage as an economic asset

Shekhawati, a cluster of districts in northern Rajasthan encompassing Sikar, Jhunjhunu, and Churu, carries a dual identity: a UNESCO-recognised landscape of ornate merchant havelis, and a source of some of India's most storied business families. That duality is precisely what the summit sought to leverage — heritage not as a museum piece, but as a launchpad for contemporary enterprise and tourism-linked development.

Rajasthan governments have periodically convened such regional summits to link conservation with private-sector participation, and this edition continued that pattern with an explicit focus on diaspora engagement. The Shekhawati diaspora — spread across Mumbai, Delhi, and international financial centres — represents a significant pool of capital and networks that the state is keen to channel back into the region.

A four-way compact for regional development

CM Sharma expressed confidence that the region will reach new dimensions of development through the collective efforts of the government, social organisations, entrepreneurs, local citizens, and the Shekhawati diaspora — a four-way compact that frames development as a shared mission rather than a top-down directive. The hashtag #आपणो_अग्रणी_राजस्थान ('Our Leading Rajasthan') anchored the summit's aspirational branding.

The real test will come in the weeks ahead — whether the summit translates into concrete policy measures around skill development, MSME support, and heritage-linked tourism infrastructure for Shekhawati's districts. Summits make promises; follow-through makes history.