Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visit Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) in Delhi on September 5, Teachers’ Day. The visit is significant as SRCC is completing 100 years.
Modi is expected to attend the college’s centenary celebrations and interact with students, news agency ANI reported.
PM Modi’s proposed Gen Z interaction
A key part of the proposed visit is expected to be a direct interaction between Modi and Gen Z students. The session is likely to give students an opportunity to share their views, aspirations and concerns with the Prime Minister.
The interaction comes amid the BJP’s ongoing outreach to the Gen Z, as the party works on a dedicated strategy to engage with young people and strengthen communication with the next generation of voters.
The BJP has recently constituted a team for its Gen Z outreach programme. It aims to bring together senior leaders and younger representatives. The initiative is aimed at understanding the aspirations of young Indians and creating more avenues for dialogue and participation.
{{/usCountry}}The BJP has recently constituted a team for its Gen Z outreach programme. It aims to bring together senior leaders and younger representatives. The initiative is aimed at understanding the aspirations of young Indians and creating more avenues for dialogue and participation.
{{/usCountry}}The party’s outreach is expected to focus on direct engagement and interaction rather than limiting communication with young people to conventional political programmes.
BJP's youth outreach plan
The BJP has set up a dedicated team for its Gen Z outreach, HT reported earlier. Party leaders discussed ways to engage young people through smaller gatherings, campus programmes and direct interaction.
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In August, BJP president Nitin Nabin chaired a meeting on the outreach plan, where leaders said that youth engagement should be a continuous process rather than limited to large political events. Around 45 leaders from key states, including poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Gujarat, were also brought into discussions on the party’s youth strategy.
The party is also planning a youth campaign featuring activities such as bike yatras, hackathons, marathons, cycling events and innovation challenges.
The BJP’s youth wing is scheduled to begin a Vadnagar-Varanasi motorcycle yatra on September 17. The party’s Sewa Pakhawada will include programmes aimed at school students, college-goers, postgraduate scholars and young innovators.
ALSO READ | ‘Good to see our concerns being heard’: Students respond to Mohan Bhagwat’s Gen Z outreach
Why Gen Z matters to the BJP
Last month, youth protests shook the government over the NEET row and eventually led to Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation as education minister. Pradhan later said attempts were made to “mislead” Gen Z during the protests.
The protests brought thousands young people onto the streets. Students and youth groups demanded accountability over paper leaks, student suicides and irregularities in the examination system. The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) also was a prominent voice during the protests.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said the protests “dented BJP’s aura” and said that opposition parties should understand why young people turned towards groups such as the CJP.
Pradhan, after leaving the education ministry, said in August that some people had attempted to “mislead” Gen Z during the NEET protests. He also defended his decision to offer his resignation over the controversy.