Harmanpreet Kaur, Leander Paes, Pullela Gopichand to be part of Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue

New Delhi [India], December 30 (ANI): The Department of Youth Affairs is set to host the Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue (VBYLD) 2026, a flagship initiative aimed at giving India's youth a meaningful role in shaping the vision of a Viksit Bharat. Harmanpreet Kaur, Leander Paes, and Pullela Gopichand, among other icons, will be part of the event, as per a release from the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
According to a VBYLD release, in the 2026 edition, over 50 lakh youth from across the country participated in a nationwide quiz conducted through the MY Bharat and MyGov platforms. Based on their performance in the quiz, around 2.5 lakh youth were shortlisted for the essay round, where they were encouraged to articulate their ideas and solutions for building a Viksit Bharat in any of the 10 tracks of VBYLD.
After a detailed evaluation process, 12,219 young participants advanced to the state-level PPT rounds, presenting solution-oriented ideas before expert panels. So far, 34 States and Union Territories have completed their state championship rounds, ensuring representation from every region of the country. From these rounds, around 2,000 youth have been selected to participate at the national level.
The selected contingents from each State and Union Territory will be formally flagged off to New Delhi by Governors, Chief Ministers and UT Administrators.
The national-level Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue will be held from January 9 to 12, 2026, at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi. During the four-day programme, participants will engage in mentoring sessions, policy discussions, group activities and structured presentations.
Young leaders will interact with a distinguished group of mentors and domain experts, including Maithali Thakur, Shreyasi Singh, Pullela Gopichand, Leander Paes and Anand Kumar, spanning fields such as governance, sports, entrepreneurship, agriculture, sustainability, culture and technology.
They will also draw inspiration from national icons like Sridhar Vembu, Palki Sharma Upadhyay, Jaya Kishori, Shubhanshu Shukla, Prashant Nair and Indian women's cricket captain Harmanpreet Kaur.
Adding a global dimension to the dialogue, 80 Indian diaspora youth selected under the Know India Programme of the Ministry of External Affairs will also participate in VBYLD 2026.
A key highlight of the programme will be January 12, National Youth Day, observed on the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda. On this occasion, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will interact with the selected young leaders. The Prime Minister will also visit the PM Gallery, where inspiring youth stories across all 10 themes will be showcased through curated displays.
Additionally, select participants will have the unique opportunity to present their best ideas directly to the Prime Minister, receiving his guidance, feedback, and encouragement on their vision for Viksit Bharat 2047. (ANI)