Youth, Education and Employment Resolution adopted at the 85th Plenary Session of the Indian National Congress on February 25-26, 2023 at Raipur, Chattisgarh

Youth

1. The Indian National Congress has made a concerted effort to recognize and address the immense potential of the country’s youth. The Information Technology and telecom revolutions led by Late Prime Minister Shri Rajiv Gandhi equipped a generation of students, entrepreneurs, scientists, researchers, and IT professionals with the tools to gain global recognition and lay the foundation for India to emerge as a leader of the 21st century. He also lowered the voting age to 18 years. This change provided young people with a vital opportunity to take responsibility and participate actively in the democratic process and nation building. Moreover, the age for contesting panchayat elections was also lowered to 21 years. This added a new vibrancy to local bodies by enabling articulate and capable young leaders to participate effectively in local self-governance.

2. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru had a visionary outlook for India, aiming for the country to be a leader in every field. Soon after independence, under the Congress government, world-class institutions such as the Indian Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes of Management, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, and the Indian Space Research Organisation were established to provide training and opportunities for India’s youth.

3. Women in India have faced oppression for centuries together. Our freedom movement promised them equal status. The Constitution of India guaranteed equality as a fundamental right. Savitribai Phule, Fatima Sheikh, Pandita Ramabai, Muthu Lakshmi Reddy, Babasaheb Ambedkar, ThanthaiPeriyar and Mahatma Gandhi led the two-century struggle to bring women to the mainstream.

4. In the history of free India, Congress has stood for women’s representation and equal participation. Congress governments after independence empowered women through path breaking reforms such as equal franchise, equal right to property, education and social advancement. Shri Rajiv Gandhi brought in the historic reservation of 33% seats for women in local bodies, later extended to 50%.

5. However, the institutions that played a crucial role in shaping the nation and building a modern India are currently under attack by the Narendra Modi government driven by the regressive and divisive ideology of the RSS/BJP.

6. Congress stands for a society where young women break barriers of gender and social discrimination. Congress is committed to the 33% reservation in legislatures and parliament for women and tabled the bill when the UPA government was in power.

7. The rising violence against women is a matter of deep concern and the statistics draw a grim picture. Of the six million crimes that police in India recorded in 2021 a staggering 4,28,278 cases involved crimes against women. This is a rise of 26.35% over six years.

8. Sexual violence also takes communal and casteist shades in India. The cruelly raped BilkisBano is still fighting for justice and the young Dalit women raped and murdered in Kathua, Unnao, Hathras and in other places are fighting the arduous battle for justice and to smash the impunity our society offers to people who indulge in sexual violence on minority and oppressed women.

9. While Congress party is committed to building a progressive, safe society by empowering women, the RSS objectifies and disempowers women. Congress believes in an equal future for women and is committed to the creation of equal opportunities for women in education and employment and their socio-political-economic empowerment.

10. The Indian National Congress is committed to the empowerment of youth especially younger women and youth from marginalized sections of the society through various political and government initiatives. We will build a future for youth that is just, equitable, and free from oppression and where they can realise their full potential. When in government we launched various initiatives to empower our youth and while in opposition, we continue our fight for their rights and opportunities. Today is again such a time. The youth of country need us in their fight against a government and ideology that places them at the mercy of powerful. Today is also the day, we recommit ourselves to the ideals of our Constitution and to the fight for the youths’ rights.

11. Congress will ensure that the Prevention of Sexual Harassment committees are formed in all workplaces. We will strive to pass the bill seeking 33% reservation while ensuring that this is an inclusive reservation which will see our young women from the Backward, Dalit and Tribal communities reaching legislatures and Parliament to take our nation forward. Congress resolves to realise the vision of gender equity and ensure justice for all sections of the society.

12. Congress will work towards the empowerment of women and their targeted upliftment through educational scholarships, ensure women access higher education with a better gross enrolment ratio, upskill women for success in the workforce, provide loans to women to venture into entrepreneurship and strengthen workplace security and women friendliness. Congress aims to provide the first-generation girl learner a free tuition scholarship up to post-graduation. We will enact laws to remove the gender disparity in wages and salaries.

13. Congress resolves to realise the vision of gender equity and ensure justice for all sections of the society.

14. Congress resolves to reclaim the lost space for the youth and to provide opportunities for their all-round development.

15. Political Empowerment The Indian National Congress believes in the political empowerment of the youth, right from Panchayat levels to the Parliament. Ensuring internal democracy within the Indian Youth Congress and National Student Union of India were effective steps taken in this direction under the guidance of our leader, Shri Rahul Gandhi.

16. We strongly believe that it is imperative that the Udaipur Declaration be implemented in word and spirit. We recognize that 50 under 50 was a revolutionary concept for the Congress organisation that must be implemented across all party positions from booth level to the Congress Working Committee.

17. Similarly, keeping a five-year term for all the positions is also important to give chance to newer people in the organization.

18. The true political empowerment of youth will come from inclusive politics ensuring representation of the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Minorities, and Women.

19. The youth of the country are looking towards us. The time to act is now.

Education

20. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru envisioned a modern and egalitarian India that would lead the world in all fields. The Congress party, with its legacy of our freedom movement and Nehruvian ideals, is committed to upholding the Constitution of India and its vision in both letter and spirit. The National Education Policies introduced by various Congress governments provided a broad framework for national building, with a free hand given to states to adopt policies according to their specific needs and opportunities.

21. Government-run higher education institutions were able to produce scientists and researchers who were stalwarts in different fields. This resulted in India emerging as a leader in space technology, atomic energy, and other areas.

22. The Dr. Radhakrishnan Commission laid a strong foundation for higher education in India. The University Grants Commission was established to provide adequate funding for universities administered by the Indian states.

23. School education was strengthened by establishing schools in every neighborhood, providing mid-day meals, and establishing KendriyaVidyalayas, Sainik Schools, and Navodaya Vidyalayas to address the needs of every section of society, especially tribals, Dalits, OBCs, and women.

24. The Right to Education Act of 2009 by the Dr. Manmohan Singh government was a landmark achievement for ensuring that every child had access to quality education, regardless of their socio-economic background. It allowed children to enroll in schools of their choice in their local area, providing them with a stress-free environment to learn and grow.

25. Unfortunately, from 2014 to 2022, hundreds of schools were closed in the name of mergers and twinning programmes. This will be a death knell to the public education system in India and have a detrimental effect because many children, especially girls, will drop out due to a lack of government schools nearby.

26. Regrettably, democratic space in higher education institutions, including Jawaharlal Nehru University, has been eroded in recent years. Communal forces did not spare educational institutions and are now engaging in divisive politics, disrupting the peaceful environment of campuses. It is essential to safeguard academic freedom and protect the democratic values enshrined in India’s Constitution to maintain a vibrant and inclusive education system.

27. While the nation is celebrating its 76th year of independence, the BJP government aims to weaken the education system. Discrimination in various forms have crept into education institutions and has resulted in the death of many students. Every effort to recognise the discrimination after the death of Rohit Vemula was scuttled by the Union government. Caste, gender and communal violence has spread across the higher education institutions.

28. The BJP government has cut Rs. 2,000 crores from scholarships, fellowships and financial aid schemes for students from disadvantaged backgrounds across ministries in 2023-24. This includes drastic cuts to Pre-Matric Scholarships to Minorities, OBCs, SCs and STs, the Maulana Azad National Fellowship for Minority Students and National Fellowship for SCs. Skill development and vocational training programs for minority students have also been axed under this government.

29. The National Education Policy 2020 (NEP2020) is trying to reduce the entire education to that of literacy, numeracy, and skilling, and aims to weaken the public education system.

30. NEP2020 is a roadmap for establishing a Mono Cultural Nation. Every feature of NEP2020 aims to demolish the basic structure of the Constitution, particularly Federalism and Social Justice.

31. Congress is concerned about the gap between education and employment. The current focus is mainly on technical skills. Employability requires a combination of technical skills, soft skills, creativity, and innovation.

32. Despite having access to education, employment, social and political spaces, women still face gender discrimination, gender stereotyping, harassment, and sexual violence of worst kind.

33. The Congress party recognises that educational campuses must create a safe and inclusive learning environment where students can learn and grow without fear of discrimination, violence, or harassment. Gender-based discrimination must be addressed through gender sensitised curricula at all levels of education. This will help young minds to understand and respect women as equals.

34. Congress remains committed to building a strong education system that empowers the youth and prepares them to lead India into the future.

35. Congress will ensure that the Union government plays the role of a coordinator and supports the educational development in each state according to its needs and demands. Congress is committed to moving education from the concurrent list to the state list.

36. Congress will ensure equitable access to education for all, at all levels of education by strengthening and expanding the public education system.

37. The curriculum, syllabus, and pedagogy will be well designed to address the needs and challenges of the 21st Century. With the emergence of technological advancements such as Artificial Intelligence, the world needs more vibrant, more intelligent, and more innovative people.

38. Congress pledges to ensure that India becomes a leader of the world in education.

Employment

39. The Congress party is deeply concerned about the rampant rise in unemployment, which is at a 45-year high, and also about the atrocities and violence being inflicted upon youth and students, and the lack of vision and support for their growth from the Modi government.

40. The BJP came to power riding on fake promises such as providing 2 crore jobs every year to our youth and depositing Rs. 15 lakh in each household’s bank accounts. However, immediately after coming to power, the BJP has systematically killed opportunities for youth and thrown them into a future filled with uncertainty and poverty. This is new India where the Prime Minister wants our youth to fry and sell Pakoras instead of finding meaningful and well-paying jobs.

41. The Modi government’s recent decision to launch the Agniveer scheme has snatched opportunities to serve the nation from the hands of millions of India’s youths. Serving in the army was a matter of pride for country’s youth. Earlier retired army personnel would easily find jobs respectable enough for their years of service to the nation. Now the BJP’s Agniveer scheme takes away permanent jobs from youth in order to provide cheap army-trained personnel to industry.

42. Millions of youth are being cheated through numerous paper leaks in various recruitment scams. The Central government recipe for spoiling the future of youth is - departments publicize a job opening, invite applications, collect money, and then cancel the recruitment process altogether or delay it for so long that a majority of the applicants after filling their forms and paying the fees grow older than the age-limit set by the recruiting department. We saw what happened in the case of the Railway’s Non-Technical Popular Category or Group D exams. When youth demanded their rights and protested against injustice, they were threatened by a lifelong ban on applying.

43. We demand that the army revert to previous recruitment schemes where permanent jobs can be provided to youth eager to serve the nation.

44. Corporate investment is low because the social environment of religious division and social disharmony is not conducive to investment. Corporates are also not confident to invest because of the extreme cronyism of the Modi government which favours just two or three industrialists.

45. The government sector is not creating enough jobs because the Modi government has cut corporate taxes and not invested in expanding the government sector. So, there are no new jobs.

46. India has among the lowest young women’s labour participation rates in the world. Young women feel hopeless in the job market and have stopped looking for jobs. No country in history has progressed without getting women into the labour force, especially young women.

47. Congress is committed to revive and expand the manufacturing sector which will in turn generate maximum employment.

48. Micro Small and Medium Enterprises are the backbone of our country. The BJP government destroyed them with decisions like a flawed GST regime and Demonetisation. Congress commits to support MSMEs with financial aid, easy loans for working capital, training of MSMEs to harness new age technologies, and innovative marketing networks and channels.

49. As employment patterns change due to innovations in technology, millions of youth are now part of the Gig Economy. Congress commits to policy interventions to help gig workers overcome problems such as lack of social and medical security, etc.

50. Congress commits to design, develop and implement bridge courses, finishing schools, and skill upliftment courses at the constituency level to cater to localised needs and businesses.

51. Good quality jobs will come from both the public and private sector.

52. Private sector jobs will be created when the corporate sector invests in new projects and expands. But corporates will invest only when they have confidence in the economy and the government. Currently, corporate sector investment is very low which is why there are no jobs for youth.

53. Congress will expand the government sector and create more government jobs through expansion of state capacity.

54. Congress will provide a safe environment, with guaranteed social security for all workers including domestic skilled workers, agricultural labour, factory workers and employees in the service sector.

55. Guarantee of minimum wages, the stability of earning for small and micro entrepreneurs and protecting the public sector will be the priority of the Congress.

56. The Congress party will remove cronyism, treat everyone equally, improve social harmony and build confidence for private sector to invest and create jobs for youth.

57. Bringing young women to the labour force would be the priority focus of Congress through various policies.

Sports

58. The Congress party is committed to making India a great sporting nation. The UPA government established Operation Excellence for the London Olympics which provided training, coaching and all other facilities to teams and individual competitors in different disciplines which helped India win 6 medals at the London Olympics. Medal prospects were funded specifically under the National Sports Development Fund (NSDF). The UPA-II government also curated select schemes such as the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Abhiyan, the Urban Sports Infrastructure Scheme and the National Sports Talent Search System to ensure the development and upliftment of sports across the country.

59. Additionally, the UPA government introduced the National Sports Development Code of 2011, which prioritised ethical standards for sporting events and sought to promote good governance among National Sports Federations. The principles enshrined in the code have been supported and upheld by High Courts and the Supreme Court.

60. However, the BJP government has reversed the progress achieved under the UPA. Despite the launch of the Target Olympic Podium Scheme in 2014 to provide assistance to the nation’s top athletes and increase our medal prospects, India managed only 2 medals at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016. TOPS was also involved in a series of controversies, such as the inclusion of athletes who had been suspended for doping, the exclusion of India’s top badminton women’s doubles team, and the denial of funds to former the double trap world number one.

61. The NDA government also merged the schemes introduced by the UPA to form the Khelo India scheme, which has been granted an increased budgetary allocation. However, this increase has come at the expense of other schemes like the NSDF. The government has also ignored many administrative gaps as well as policy duplications that have crept in because of its careless formulation of sports schemes.

62. Under the BJP government, in 2019, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) suspended India’s National Dope Testing Laboratory (NDTL) due to lack of compliance with international standards on dope testing. The accreditation was restored only in December 2021. However, during the period of suspension, the effectiveness of the NADA was hampered as the agency had to send samples to foreign WADA accredited labs at higher expense but had to manage the same with the government allocated budget. This caused the NADA to miss its annual target of testing, and the sample collection rate fell by at least 50%.

63. The Congress party will develop a sports policy that will inculcate a culture of sports and fitness in our youth, especially among girls and women, and will encourage sports as a career.

64. Congress will take suitable measures to ensure that the Constitution of each sports body is in accordance with norms and principles of good governance, that elections are held according to them, and that there is adequate representation in each sports body for active players, former players, and women.

65. Recognising that sports promote a culture of fitness and healthy competition, Congress commits to making physical education and sports an integral and mandatory part of the school curriculum and to encourage higher education institutions to accord sports appropriate priority.

66. Additionally, Congress will allocate sufficient funds to promote sports among girls and women, persons with disabilities, and disadvantaged groups such as Scheduled Tribes.

VI. Subgroup - Youth, Education & Employment

Chairman - Shri Amarinder Singh Raja Brar Convenor - Ms. S. Jothimani

Members: 1. Shri B.V. Srinivas 2. Shri Neeraj Kundan 3. Ms. Meenakshi Natarajan 4. Shri Pargat Singh 5. Shri Shakeel Ahmed Khan 6. Shri Krishna Byre Gowda 7. Smt. Varsha Eknath Gaikwad 8. Smt. Geeta Bhukkal 9. Shri Krishna Allavaru 10. Smt. Alka Lamba 11. Shri Hibi Eden 12. Shri Jignesh Mevani 13. Shri Abhishek Dutt 14. Smt. Karishma Thakur 15. Dr. Angkita Dutta 16. Shri Kanhaiya Kumar