"Arise! Awake! and stop not until the goal is reached."
- Swami Vivekanda
National Youth Day is celebrated every year on January 12 to mark the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda. It was declared by the Government of India in 1984 in order to honour the contribution made by Swami Vivekananda towards the betterment of Indian Society.
The main purpose of the National Youth Day is to propagate the ideals and philosophies of Swami Vivekanda in today's youth, chief among them is rational thinking.
Swami Vivekananda has sent a message from Osaka (Japan) to the youth of the country - let's be human. He also dwelt on the capabilities of the youth; he wanted the youth to train itself in order to serve humanity. What he wanted from the youth were 'muscles of iron' and 'nerves of steel'.
It is also called Yuwa Diwas. To mark this day, a National Youth Festival is arranged by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports every year between January 12 and 16.
It was in 1995 that the National Youth Festival was celebrated for the first time under the programme of National Integration Camp (NIC). As a part of this festival, the National Youth Partliament Festival (NYPF) is also being celebrated since 2019. The Indian Government (Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports) conducts National Youth Festival each year between 12th and 16th January. The day is celebrated to spread awareness about how the youth should be encouraged and guided so that they can contribute to the countries development. It is organised in collaboration with one of the state governments.
Theme of National Youth Festival 2022: Transforming food systems and youth innovation for human and planetary health
