Budgeting for the Future: India’s Youth Get a Voice

Before the budget season arrived, the government of India started a campaign to involve the youth directly in the policy discourse. The Prime Minister of India, Mr. Narendra Modi, started engaging with the winners of the “My India Best Quest 2026” contest at the state and union-territory level, a program that aims at involving the youth in the debate over the union budget. 

Instead of considering fiscal policy as an exercise that is solely the domain of experts who conduct it in secrecy, the initiative views it as something the youth can influence as well.

Contests such as these often require students to come up with ideas, papers, or proposals regarding economic concerns, which are then selected and discussed directly with top-level management. In a country that is among the world’s youngest nations, civic engagement contests like this make a difference because they can shape a generation of individuals who feel that they belong in the decision-making process instead of remaining mere spectators, along with generating some unconventional ideas.