The Call of Gandhi in Kausani’s Mountain Air: Youth For Truth Camp Declares a Resolve

✍ Vivek Kumar Saw

From June 7 to 9, 2025, the serene Anasakti Ashram in Kausani, Uttarakhand—where the cool mountain breeze calms inner restlessness—hosted the ‘Youth For Truth’ camp. Participants included young changemakers and seasoned Gandhians from across the country. They came with questions, hope, and the urge to co-create a better world.

What stood out most was the heartening intergenerational exchange—between youth bubbling with passion and elders brimming with lived wisdom. The silence of disconnect that had long hovered between generations seemed to dissolve, giving way to learning, empathy, and mutual inspiration.

7 June 1893: A Day That Planted the Seed of Ahimsa

The camp began on 7 June 2025, marking 132 years since Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was forcefully thrown out of a first-class train compartment in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. That moment of humiliation ignited within him a fire that would one day reshape the moral compass of the world through nonviolence and truth.

The spirit of that historic date was reawakened at Anasakti Ashram, not as a commemoration, but as an inspiration to act.

Echoes from the Past: 1975 Representative Camp

Coincidentally, on the same date in 1975, the Central Gandhi Memorial Fund had organized a similar gathering at the very same place. Chaired by Shriman Narayan, that camp too had focused on constructive work and social transformation.

Times have changed, but the questions remain strikingly similar. The camp reminded participants that the struggle for answers is itself a part of life’s deeper meaning.

Three Crucial Dialogues: Youth, Expectations, and Gandhi’s Misconceptions

Throughout the three days, in-depth discussions were held on:

• Contemporary challenges faced by youth

• Expectations from elder Gandhians and institutions

• Addressing and correcting common misconceptions about Gandhi

After extensive dialogue, participants adopted a set of resolutions, committing to implement these ideas with sincerity and continuity across Gandhi-inspired circles in India.

Rising Against Alcohol: A Protest Echoes in the Valleys

The camp transformed into a collective movement when all participants—young activists, senior thinkers, women from Lakshmi Ashram—marched together from Pant Marg to the Kausani trijunction, demanding the closure of alcohol shops in the region.

“Shut Down Liquor Shop!”

“No Alcohol on Gandhi’s Land!”

Their voices pierced the calm hills, not merely in protest but as a cultural assertion. The demonstration wasn’t just against intoxicants—it was a defense of Kausani’s Gandhian identity and moral legacy.

Reviving Legacy Through Action, Not Just Remembrance

The protest and the camp together posed an honest introspection: Have we allowed our forefathers’ flames to dim, or have we simply become too comfortable in our digital activism?

This camp was a wake-up call. Change cannot happen with words alone—it demands sweat, discipline, and on-ground engagement.

Youth For Truth: A New Beginning Rooted in Old Ideals

The Youth For Truth camp wasn’t just a gathering—it was a declaration that the fire of transformation still flickers, ready to become a blaze. As elders and youth united, they sowed seeds for a future grounded in truth, action, and Gandhian resolve.

Note : The author is a research scholar at Mahatma Gandhi International Hindi University, Wardha)