Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday, 11 June 2026 interacted with youth participants from Chhattisgarh and Delhi under Yuva Sangam Phase 6, describing the programme as a celebration of the spirit of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and its emphasis on experiential learning rooted in India's cultural diversity.

Context

Posting in Hindi on X, Minister Pradhan said the exchange gave him the opportunity to 'converse with young participants and understand their experiences and ideas' (unke anubhavon aur vichaaron ko jaanne ka avsar mila). Participants shared that visits to historical sites, cultural heritage landmarks and different regions had allowed them to understand India's diversity, culture and unity through first-hand experience — what the minister termed 'Experiential Learning.'

A cultural programme rooted in Chhattisgarh's rich traditions was also held during the event, which Pradhan described as beautifully representing the spirit of 'unity in diversity.'

Policy Backdrop

Yuva Sangam is a youth exchange initiative under the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat (EBSB) framework, which was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015 to strengthen state-to-state cultural and people-to-people ties across India. The programme pairs states and Union Territories and enables students to travel to partner regions for cultural immersion.

NEP 2020, approved by the Union Cabinet in July 2020, replaced India's 1986 education policy and placed significant emphasis on experiential, value-based and multidisciplinary learning — moving education, as Pradhan put it, 'beyond books and into lived experience.' Yuva Sangam is presented by the Ministry as a direct operational expression of that philosophy.

Stakeholders and Impact

The immediate beneficiaries are student and youth participants from Chhattisgarh and Delhi who took part in Phase 6 exchanges, gaining exposure to each other's cultural heritage, historical sites and regional identities. The broader cohort of young Indians enrolled in higher education institutions linked to the EBSB network stands to benefit as further phases are rolled out.

Minister Pradhan framed the programme's long-term significance in terms of national development, stating that India's 'Yuva Shakti' — youth power — would solve the problems of both India and the world in the coming years, realising the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision of transforming India into a developed nation by the centenary of independence.

What's Next

The Ministry of Education is expected to continue rolling out subsequent phases of Yuva Sangam, with periodic updates on participant states and cultural pairings. The programme's trajectory will be closely watched as a practical benchmark for how NEP 2020's experiential learning goals are being implemented at scale beyond the classroom.

As India advances toward the 2047 development milestone, youth exchange initiatives like Yuva Sangam are likely to remain central to the government's strategy of harnessing the country's demographic dividend through cultural integration and experiential education.