Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said that the fifth edition of the Chhatron ki Goonj initiative will be held in Madhya Pradesh's Indore on September 19, asserting that it is necessary to hear the voice of every student in the country to change the system.
Gandhi has held four Chhatron ki Goonj events in Kota, Dehradun, Prayagraj and Pune. The last one in Pune on August 22 was for girl students.
In a post in Hindi on X, Gandhi said, "My dear students, youth and India's Gen Z, the entire country is watching with you as today a broken education system has extinguished the flame of your hopes and pushed your future into darkness."
"Through Chhatron ki Goonj, I am meeting you in different cities to understand your challenges. As part of this campaign, on September 19, I will once again be among you in Indore," the leader of opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha said.
But to change this system, it is essential to hear the voice of every student in the country, their pain and their opinion, he said.
"Go to the link below and tell us — what is stopping you from achieving your dreams? You can also reach us by making a video.
"Your problems. Your suggestions. Together, we will bring hope back," Gandhi said and shared the link for feedback of students.
In a video along with the post, Gandhi said the idea behind the Chhatron ki Goonj programme is to listen to what the students and the country feel and to allow students to express themselves.
"The objective of the Chhatron ki Goonj programme is to keep before the country your thoughts, expression and fears. And also raise the issues that our students want raised," he said in the video.
"And in that way the Chhatron ki Goonj idea is to express the voice of India's students -- tribal students, hunger-striking, building collapse and many students dying in Delhi. There are examples of this across the country," he said.
The truth is that the students have lost faith in the education system, Gandhi said.
"We want you to tell us your thoughts about the education system. It can be the exam system, it can be the type of pressure it puts you under, it can be hostels, accommodation... we want to hear from you what it is that makes you lose hope in our education system," Gandhi said.
He urged students to convey what needs to be done to restore hope among students in India's education system.