Youths in focus as PM inaugurates National Youth Festival today

BENGALURU: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is scheduled to inaugurate the National Youth Festival in Hubballi later today (Thursday), may be looking to woo young voters ahead of the Karnataka Assembly election which is scheduled later this year.

As per the Election Commission data, there are 5.5 crore registered voters in the state of which seven lakh are young voters. The National Youth Festival may seem the perfect platform to draw young voters towards the BJP, many feel.

An artist giving finishing touches to a portrait of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the National Youth Festival venue at Keshwapur in Hubballi on Thursday.

The PM may take up a campaign like he did in Gujarat, with stress on the youth, and getting more youngsters to contest the election. He is also likely to highlight the BJP government’s pro-youth programmes and speak to them about nationalism, Make in India and other issues. Since the youth festival is being organised to commemorate the birth anniversary of philosopher Swami Vivekananda, a bonanza may also be expected.

The PM is also expected to talk about the Agniveer programme, Rozgar Melas, creation of 10 lakh jobs in 2023, MUDRA Yojana among other, targeting the youth.