PUNJAB XI The 15th assembly of Punjab witnessed a historic departure from the bipolar politics practised by the state since independence. For the first time, the leader of the Opposition was not from the two traditional rivals, Congress or Shiromani Akali Dal, but from the debutant Aam Aadmi Party. It’s also arguably the youngest assembly in the history of Punjab with 43% firsttimers, 34 of them below the age of 45. The fresh faces reflect the demographics of a state growing younger by the year. Youngsters between 18 and 39 constituted 53% of the state’s voters in the assembly polls. Little wonder then that the poor state of education, rampant unemployment & drugs are the three concerns raised by almost every young legislator. Manraj Grewal Sharma speaks to the 11 young legislators between 25 and 36 years of age to find out how they propose to be the agents of change for a resurgent Punjab.
