On July 9 every year, India celebrates National Students Day. On July 9, 1949, student organization Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad was founded on the ideals of Swami Vivekananda as a platform for constructive student activism. National Students Day is celebrated each year to mark the foundation day of the organization. Active in Indian student politics for more than seven decades, the ABVP today has significant influence across the country. The impact on Indian politics can be determined from the fact that almost most of the BJP leaders holding ministerial posts at the Centre as well as in the states, had started their journey as ABVP activists. RSS-affiliated ABVP has around 32 lakh students as its members.
If we talk about the origin of ABVP then, the ABVP was founded in 1948 by a group of students and teachers. But, it was officially registered on 9 July 1949. Its main aim of it was to build a nationalist movement in campuses that were strongly influenced by Communism at the time. Today the organisation has reached more than 4,500 cities and towns. The organisation is nowhere going to stop and reach to every corner of the State. The ABVP was set up with the support of RSS and immensely guided by its pracharaks in initial years. Talking about the model of ABVP, it evolved a unique model that was totally different from most other student organisations in India. ABVP has not only just set up units in college campuses, it has formed units of students at the district level across the country. This helps students to enrol themselves in any correspondence courses as well.
ABVP has expanded both vertically and horizontally. A couple of decades ago, it realised that specific groups of students have specific issues, and started constituting special panels for technical, medical and management institutions.ABVP’s services in Covid lockdown are immensely appreciated. When all the educational institutions were closed as part of the nationwide lockdown to stop spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, the ABVP at that time initially carried out relief and rehabilitation work and took constant feedback from students to share with the Prime Minister’s Office. ABVP had collected Rs 2.86 crore to and donated it to the PM CARES fund, and distributed around 58 lakh masks, 30 lakh food packets and 31.7 lakh ration kits. It also helped to send more than 17,000 students home as a considerable number were from North-eastern states and tribal areas in the country.
