Kumar Bahukhandi
In Short
Chief Minister honored the youth at a ceremony organised by the Sports and Youth Welfare Department.
Youth move towards their goals with strong willpower, hard work, and dedication – CM Vishnu Deo Sai
Raipur: Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai honored eight youth from the state and the Yuva Star Seva Samiti Khurtuli from Dhamtari district for their outstanding work in various fields on National Youth Day today. He presented the Chhattisgarh Yuva Ratna Award to youth who have excelled in social, cultural, literary, educational, sports, and other fields at the Yuva Ratna Award ceremony organised by the Sports and Youth Welfare Department at the Naveen Vishram Bhavan in Raipur on Tuesday January 13, 2026.
Recalling Swami Vivekananda’s time spent in Raipur on his 163rd birth anniversary, Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai said at the ceremony that Swami Vivekananda, at just 31 years of age, enhanced the prestige and respect of India’s cultural richness and civilisation worldwide.
He commended the Sports and Youth Welfare Department for honoring the state’s outstanding young talents, emphasising that India is a country of youth. We are working to nurture and advance our young talent. He urged the youth to follow the path shown by Swami Vivekananda and move towards their goals with strong willpower, hard work, dedication, and determination CM Sai added.
Deputy Chief Minister and Sports and Youth Welfare Minister Arun Sao, in his address at the event, said that Swami Vivekananda had hoisted the flag of India’s cultural power across the world. Today, millions of youth are inspired by him and working tirelessly.
He said that the number of applications received for the Yuva Ratna Samman shows that Chhattisgarh has no shortage of talent. The government has taken the initiative to promote these talents. Taking a major initiative, the Sports and Youth Welfare Department today honored the state’s talents with the “Yuva Ratna Samman” for the first time in the state, recognising their excellence in personal development and social service. Talents aged 15 to 29 years were awarded for their outstanding work and achievements, Sao noted .
In his welcome address, Yashwant Kumar, Secretary of the Sports and Youth Welfare Department, stated that applications from many talented youth from across the state were received for the Yuva Ratna Award. Selecting each name from these diverse fields was extremely difficult.
The state’s youth are achieving outstanding work in many fields. The department has instituted these awards this year to recognise and highlight their achievements. State Youth Commission Chairman Vishwa Vijay Singh Tomar, Raipur District Panchayat Chairman Naveen Kumar Agarwal, and Deputy Director of the Sports and Youth Welfare Department Rashmi Thakur, along with several departmental officials, were also present at the event.
These youth from the state received the Yuva Ratna Award
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai presented the Chhattisgarh Yuva Ratna Award to Piyush Jaiswal, the youngest scientist and PhD student in Astrophysics from Bemetara, and a gold medalist at the NASO Olympiad, at a ceremony held on National Youth Day.
He honored Shilpa Sahu of Kanker for her outstanding work in the social sector, Amit Yadav of Surguja for his literary work, Mrinal Vidani of Mahasamund for her innovation, and Paridhi Sharma of Durg for her outstanding work in the field of education.
The Chief Minister presented the Yuva Ratna Award to international Kabaddi player Sanju Devi of Bilaspur for her outstanding work in sports, Sachin Kunhare of Kawardha for his outstanding work in art and culture, and Aaru Sahu for her outstanding work in folk art.
He also presented the Chhattisgarh Yuva Ratna Award to Yuva Star Seva Samiti of Khurtuli in Dhamtari district for its outstanding work in various fields such as health, environment, cleanliness, literacy, women empowerment, social awareness, drug de-addiction, voter awareness, conservation of water sources, etc.
