34 teams from 13 states debate contemporary issues at MSMSV Youth Conclave
Jaipur: Thirty-four teams from 13 states converged at Maharaja Sawai Man Singh Vidyalaya (MSMSV), Jaipur, on August 1 and 2 for the National Youth Conclave, “Push the Envelope,” where students debated issues ranging from the role of the Opposition and freedom of speech to artificial intelligence, social media and contemporary politics.
The two-day conclave concluded with Oindriya Banerjee of B.D.M. International School, Kolkata, and Annamayya Tak of Little Angels High School, Gwalior, emerging as joint winners. They received a cash prize of ₹11,000 each from Education Society chairman Vijit Singh and Vidyalaya chairman Vikramaditya Singh.
The grand finale featured two debate rounds. The first, “The New Normal in Present Politics,” brought together themes discussed over the previous two days, while the second challenged participants with the unconventional topic, “Cockroach vs Parasite.” Earlier sessions explored the role of the Opposition in a democracy, freedom of speech, the growing influence of social media creators on public opinion and the opportunities and challenges posed by artificial intelligence.
From the 12 preliminary sessions, 12 students advanced to the final round. They included Swasti Khangarot of Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls’ School, Jaipur; Ronit Jain of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Vidyashram, Jaipur; Kiara Aggarwal of Springdales School, New Delhi; Ananya Gupta of Maharaja Sawai Man Singh Vidyalaya, Jaipur; Yashaswi of Tagore International School, New Delhi; Pragnya Gupta of Maharaja Sawai Bhawani Singh School, Jaipur; Aishwarya Singh of Delhi Public School, Abu Road; Saanvi Roy of Birla Balika Vidyapeeth, Pilani; Riddhima Gupta of Cambridge Court World School, Jaipur; Oindriya Banerjee of B.D.M. International School, Kolkata; Himalaya Verma of The New Public School, Chandigarh; and Annamayya Tak of Little Angels High School, Gwalior.
The finalists were judged by a panel comprising senior journalists Shoeb Khan, Manish Sharma, Meena Sharma and Prerna Sahni, who evaluated participants on clarity of thought, originality, content and presentation.
Addressing the valedictory session, senior journalist Sanjeev Srivastava commended the students for engaging confidently with issues shaping the country and encouraged them to continue participating in informed public discourse.
The conclave concluded with a vote of thanks by Project Director Ranjeeta Mathur, while Principal Jyoti Joshi presented mementoes to the judges and organisers.
