New Delhi, India—UPF and the International Association of Youth and Students for Peace (IAYSP) commemorated National Youth Day 2021, also known as Vivekananda Jayanti, on January 12, the birthday of Indian spiritual leader Swami Vivekananda, by launching the national Youth Peace Club (YPC) initiative. The initiative seeks to motivate and engage youth to become peace leaders through various social and educational activities, leadership training and volunteerism. More than several hundred people attended the event, which was broadcast live on Zoom and YouTube.
The program was addressed by several current and former government leaders as well as leaders from other sectors, including:
- Kiren Rijiju, union minister of state, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports;
- Bhubaneswar Kalita, a member of parliament and chairman of the Northeast MP Forum;
- K.V. Rajan, former ambassador of India;
- Archarya Shrivatsa Goswami, chief priest of Radharamana Mandir, Vrindavan and chairman of the Interreligious Association for Peace and Development (IAPD)-Asia Pacific; and
- S.P. Singh, vice chancellor of the Royal Global University and vice chairman of the International Association of Academicians for Peace (IAAP)-India.
In a video message, Hon. Rijiju extended his full support for the expansion of the Youth Peace Club.
During the program, Dr. S.P. Singh was appointed as an Ambassador for Peace who will support the activities of the Peace Club as a patron, and leaders of the YPC National Committee were appointed as Youth Ambassadors for Peace.
