“Let us proclaim to every soul. - Arise, awake and stop not till the goal is reached.”
--Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda's inspiring personality was well known both in India and in World during the last decade of the nineteenth century and the first decade of the twentieth. To commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda, Abhivyaktee-Panaji, a non profit making registered organisation began organizing ‘YUVA JAGRUTI’ ; a day long festival of the Youth and by the Youth from the year 2013 at the Institute Menezes Braganza’s main hall as well as conference room and foyer area at Panaji. The idea was conceptualised by Pratibha taie Deshpande who was an active worker of the Vivekanand Kendra, Mumbai and Goa region and also the founder President of Abhivyaktee-Panaji. Since 2018, this state level youth festival began receiving the support of Goa State Bio Diversity Board. After being associated with GSBB, the event rose to newer heights of its popularity. The project now not only brings together the youth from schools and colleges of Goa, but also inculcates a sense of social responsibility in the organising team too. From the first year itself, the project was planned to give a platform to Literature, Fine Art and Performing Arts. All of the contests are aimed at creating awareness amongst each one of us regarding our responsibility towards the society we live in and towards mother earth. To do our bit for the environment, the event has been completely paperless since 2020. We have also begun encouraging the participating institutions and individuals to follow suit and shall continue to implement the system in coming years too.
Dr. Saish Deshpande
Project Incharge
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As secretary of Abhivyaktee, it gives me great pleasure to highlight the magnificent progress of Yuva Jagruti, a section of Abhivyaktee in collaboration with Goa State Biodiversity Board. In all of its eight editions, Yuva Jagruti has reawakened the latent power of youth making it a festival of youth for the youth and by the youth. The project is stated to imbibe the ideologies of Swami Vivekananda in the youth of today and hence incorporates various contests for the youth followed by stage performances and award function. The response of the school and college level participants has been very good. Starting from the first year with a few participants, the 2nd and 3rd year we crossed 400 mark. During the 4th year we had nearly 450 participants which in later years touched the 700 mark. We are now proud to introduce Google forms and take all entries via the internet. We are happy to announce that from the year 2021 we also went online in an effort to keep up with the current changing trends. Yuva Jagruti is managed by a team of bubbling vibrant enthusiastic youngsters who are managing the events with full responsibility which in a way is job training for the youth. We are extremely grateful to our collaborators for supporting such an endeavour.
Geeta Mangeshkar
Secretary; Abhivyaktee-Panaji
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Yuva Jagruti is an annual event, which was first conceptualized and executed by the young members of Abhivyaktee in 2013. What started as a humble gathering of 25 participants and volunteers has now grown to a festival of ideas, eagerly awaited by over 750 participants from schools and colleges all over Goa. It still remains an event that is entirely conceptualized, planned, executed, and participated by the youth. With 25 years and under as the age limit for both participants and organizers, the dynamic ideas put forward each year draw a lot of appreciation from judges, parents, and teachers visiting us. Organizing and coordinating such a large forum gives a lot of practical, real-life experience to the volunteers, as well as gives them the confidence to achieve greater things in life. At the end of each event, all organizers and volunteers collect feedback from participants, teachers, and parents to ensure that the event is even better next year. The theme of all competitions in Yuva Jagruti is in line with Swami Vivekanandaji’s and Gandhian principles for Social Responsibility and well-being of the planet as a whole. The vibrant exchange of ideas at Yuva Jagruti surely does contribute towards a positive change in our society. On a personal front, as a coordinator, Yuva Jagruti has helped me grow leaps and bounds. Whether it is fielding challenging questions during press conferences or troubleshooting problems in between events, I have learnt that making decisions on-the-go is crucial. As Yuva Jagruti continues to grow, we are excited to see lots of new participants and volunteers come forward and be inspired by the life and ideals of Swami Vivekananda Ji, to bring about constructive changes in our society.
Veda Manerikar
Chief Co-ordinator; Yuva Jagruti