NewzVille Desk
The National Youth Festival was reimagined as Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue (VBYLD) with its first edition held in 2025. Breaking the 25-year-old tradition of the conventional National Youth Festival, it aimed to foster youth leadership by providing a national platform for young people to turn their ideas for a Viksit Bharat into reality.
Addressing the press conference of VBYLD-2026, Union Minister of Youth Affairs & Sports, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya in New Delhi today said the program will definitely nurture the youth to take the nation forward.
The main objectives of VBYLD 2026 is
# Promote youth leadership and participation in nation-building
# Provide a national stage for young people to present their ideas directly to Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi
# Identify and nurture 1 lakh emerging youth leaders in politics and public life
The first edition of VBYLD 2025 edition witnessed unprecedented participation:
30+ lakh youth engaged through the Viksit Bharat Challenge
2 lakh+ essay submissions and 9,000+ youth in State Championships
3,000 young changemakers at Bharat Mandapam, including 1,500 from the Viksit Bharat Challenge Track, 1,000 from the Cultural Track, and 500 Pathbreakers (youth icons across diverse fields).
Building on the massive success of the first edition, the second edition- VBYLD 2026 aims to further increase youth participation, with efforts being undertaken to enhance the engagement of young people across the country.