class="normal">More power to youth

Strap: In the year gone by, the sheer power of youth unleashed itself on India

Naveen Chourey

In 2020, the average age of Indian population is 29 years, and that too is just average. Majority of the population will be between the age of 15 years to 24 years.

As a poet, when I personify our country, I see young blood entering into college or coming out of it.

In 2019, this young blood displayed striking courage. From college campuses to Parliament, from streets to race tracks, from corporations to creations, everything was electrified with the youthfulness of this New India.

The sheer amount of energy armed with courage is enough for the world to take note of India’s potential.

But courage is not enough in itself to channelise the energy, and the misdirected energy can be catastrophic not just for India but for the world as well.

I feel the real question is whether this young India is capable enough of holding this power and whether it is mature enough of understanding its responsibilities?

We sure have potential, but do we have the will to create a better society?

As a wise man once told me, ‘“You surely know how to swim, but will you jump into the water on an icy cold night, risk your life, just to save someone from drowning?”

Character is never defined by the skills you possess, it is all about the intent you have with those skills. Looks like this New Year and the new decade will provide us with these answers. Being a hopeless optimist, I believe the answer will be positive. At least I will try my best to be that positive answer, and I am sure there are many like me.

Youth was the future of India, now it is the present. I recall a poem by Dr Shiv Mangal Singh ‘Suman’ that I had read in my school days:

‘Tum yuva ho kaal ko bhi kaal se dikhte rahe ho

Desh ka itihaas apne khoon se likhte rahe ho

Jwaar ki, bhoochal ki, saakar paribhasha tumhi ho

Desh ki samriddhi ki sabse prabal aasha tumhi ho’

Faithful for the future

An Indian Youth

— The writer is a poet. His slam poetry performance on mob lynchings had gone viral last year. His first book of poems, Kohra Ghana Hai, releases this month