The young generation is the foundation of any nation. As none of the buildings can survive without a strong foundation, a nation can also not survive and progress without a well-qualified, efficient and dedicated young generation. The youth, if provided right motivation and opportunities, can transform any country into a superpower. However, it is not possible without their being filled with a spirit of national integration.
National integration actually means combining all the people in the country into a single whole and bringing them on one platform. It is a sentiment that makes us proud of our heritage and it binds all people in one common bond.
The progress of any nation depends on its youth who share the significant responsibility of taking the nation on the path of harmonious growth.
They should rise above all differences of caste, creed, religion, and language to live up to the spirit of national integration.
Great deal of progress has been achieved in many directions in our country, but the youth of the country must be aware that the spirit of unity sometimes faces grave challenges. Forces of separation and fanaticism threaten to destroy the cherished ideals of one country and one people. Often passions are inflamed in the name of language, region and religion and loyalty to caste and community is given priority over devotion to the motherland. A sense of alienation prevails at many places in the country such as Kashmir and the North-East.
The wounds of the Partition of India that took place in 1947, refuse to heal even today with Pakistan always trying to destabilize the peace and harmony in the country. There have been frequent riots between various communities with negative consequences for the unity and integrity of the country. In the light of all these challenges, the youth of the nation are required to understand the true meaning and need for national integration. They need to counter the forces of conservatism, regionalism, ethnicity, casteism and communalism that are obstacles in the way of national integrity.
India being a vast country, its citizens are divided into a number of castes and sub-castes, and on the basis of different languages. Moreover, India is the home of people following different religions like Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism, etc. All across the country, the people are made to be divided on one basis or another. For the progress of the nation, unity of thought, action and mutual brotherhood is very essential and the youth of the country can contribute greatly in strengthening national integration.
Almost 66 per cent of India’s population is young and so their role in national integration is vital. We have a long and rich history of the contribution of young people in the freedom struggle. However, today corruption is rampant in the corridors of power and most political parties seek to thrive by dividing the country on the basis of caste, creed and religion. It is here that the youth have to take a lead by taking the membership of social and political parties in large numbers to provide the right kind of leadership to the country.
How to foster national unity among all the people is the most critical issue. In this backdrop, national integration is a tool that can help save the country from falling into the hands of the extremists and fanatics. The youth, who are the future leaders, have a pivotal role to play in the national integration. The massive young power can do wonders provided their energy and enthusiasm are harnessed for development work. The strength, power, and capability of youth should be utilized to meet any challenge to national unity and integration.
Spirited young men and women of the new generation can play a great role in the socio-economic regeneration of the society. If the ideas, thoughts and idealism of the youth are channelized in the right, it will make the task of national integration easy and the future of the country will become brighter.
The aim of youth should be, to put the country on the road to progress and prosperity, and eradicate the ills that afflict the society. And in this stupendous task of ushering in a new era of hope and happiness, everyone has a distinct and clear cut role to play, like a cog in a machine.
The need of the hour for the youth is to realize the challenges before the country. They must not blame everything on the politicians or the powers-that-be, and sit silently. They must show the right kind of initiatives for removing all obstacles in the way of fostering national unity and integration.
The integration of any nation undoubtedly depends on its youth. After all, they are the one who carry the onerous responsibility of handling matters concerning national interests. As far as national integration is concerned, they are required to work towards curing all the ills preventing unity among the citizens of the country.
Fortunately today they are today armed with various effective social networking tools which they can use to spread awareness towards national integration. The Gen Next with the advent of new technologies is very well informed and highly approachable compared to their peers. It helps them communicate their aspirations and support cutting across physical barriers of caste, creed, distance, race, religion etc.
Being young, they already have the required spark to ignite the fire in every mission they wish to undertake and national integration is one of those. Swami Vivekanand rightly said, “Young persons are like steel or stone. They can break rocks. So youths should rise, awake and never sleep before they achieve their target.”
If the youth of today start working unitedly and tirelessly, then the nation will move ahead with the required pace on the path of progress. The integrity of the nation is only the result of integrity of the youth. If the youth works as a cohesive force, then our nation will be transformed into an ideal and a most progressive country in the world.
“The Gen Next,” as the youths are identified, is the backbone of a nation and so they should leave any orthodox, partisan or narrow mentality behind to maintain national integrity. They should understand that they belong to one nation and that they may be Biharis, Bengalis, Punjabis, or Gujratis, but ultimately they are all Indians.
Today’s youth may appear a bit impatient, but at the same time, they are more adaptable, open and ready to work. A classic example of youths making difference in matters of national integration can be the organisations such India against Corruption which was started by veteran social crusader Anna Hazare. Just after the organisation got kick-started, it created one-of-its-kind movement which saw overwhelming participation of youth.
Youth must play a significant role in the achievement of the long-awaited national integration in a bid to restoring or engendering peace, justice, stability and moral rectitude in the society. To promote national integration, it is essential for that the country’s youth identify themselves as Indians and not as simply persons belonging to different religions or castes. The youth need to have adequate awareness. As the young people of the country would determine the future of the country, more and more young people should assume responsibility of maintaining unity in the country.
Conclusion
The role of youth in achieving the desired goal of national integration can be to bring forth fresh ideas that can be formulated into policies towards curbing religious fanaticism and biases regarding cast, creed and community.
Let all the youth, in whichever part of the country they live must put united and collective efforts strengthening the hands of the Government to overtake all impediments affecting national integration and to pursue willingly all strategies which help promoting national integration.
Every Indian youth should follow the saying of Mahatma Gandhi, “Be the change you want to see in the world”. Following it, most of the proud youth can set example for others by making efforts towards promoting national integration. They should continue their efforts towards national integration thorough positive and healthy dialogues, responsible behaviour and caring attitude towards one and all.
To promote national integrity, they should collectively celebrate religious festivals such as Diwali, Christmas, Eid, Guru Purab, etc with equal joy and happiness. Young people can show their right attitude and positive spirit towards nation building through their attitudes and actions and set an example for others to follow.
Related Information:
Need and Challenges to National Integration in India