Thousands of young cyclists rolled out of college gates, school grounds and city squares across India this weekend, and they were not racing for medals. They were riding for a message: a fit, addiction-free youth for a developed India. On October 30 and 31, more than 96,700 young people took part in cyclothons, walkathons and runs organised by Mera Yuva Bharat (MY Bharat) and the National Service Scheme (NSS) under the Nasha Mukt Yuva for Viksit Bharat campaign.
The two-day mobilisation was Week 7 of the 100-week Sankalp Abhiyan, and it turned public spaces and civic landmarks into open-air classrooms on healthy living. Students, NSS volunteers and residents walked, cycled, sang and cleaned up together, carrying a simple pitch to the streets: fitness first, drugs never.
96,700 participants, 200 institutions, one message
According to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, the initiative recorded over 96,700 participations across more than 200 institutions nationwide. It was organised under the Month 2 theme, “Fit Youth, Addiction-Free Youth (Shakti evam Seva)”, which pairs physical fitness with community service.
The numbers tell the story of a weekend that mixed sport with social messaging. NSS units organised cycle rallies covering 10 to 15 kilometres, while walkathons and runs spanned 3 to 5 kilometres. Walkathons and runs together drew over 23,300 participants, and more than 8,000 young people joined the cyclothons. School units, women’s groups and senior citizens also joined the walks, giving the events a genuinely all-age feel.
More than a race: street plays, songs and plogging
The campaign deliberately went beyond physical activity. Volunteers staged street plays, known as Nukkad Nataks, wrote slogans and sang songs to start neighbourhood conversations about substance abuse, peer pressure and recovery. The street plays engaged over 5,600 people, while slogan-writing and musical activities drew more than 11,800.
There was a green thread through the weekend too. Plogging drives, which combine jogging or walking with picking up litter, drew more than 11,400 young participants, who collected litter along rally routes and handed segregated waste to local civic bodies.
The activities ended with a collective Nasha Mukt Sankalp, a pledge for an addiction-free society, taken by nearly 26,000 participants and community members. Youth ambassadors amplified the weekend online, sharing reels and photographs on Instagram with the hashtag #NashaMuktYuva.
What the Nasha Mukt Yuva campaign is about
The Nasha Mukt Yuva for Viksit Bharat campaign was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 2, 2026, and runs as a 100-week effort. It is built around four pillars: Prevent, Protect, Recover and Lead. Instead of lecturing young people about drugs, it gets them moving, keeps them engaged with their communities, and lets them lead the message themselves.
Since its launch, the initiative has recorded participation from over 30,200 locations, more than 2.5 crore viewership and over 1 crore pledges, according to the ministry. The 12-week activity calendar running from September to December 2026 includes health camps, yoga sessions, mini marathons and workshops on peer pressure.
Why this weekend mattered
Week 7 stood out because it combined so many formats at once. A cycle rally gets attention on a main road, a walkathon pulls in families, a street play stops passers-by in a market, and a plogging drive leaves a visible result on the street. Put together, the weekend reached people who would never attend a seminar on substance abuse, and reached them in a language they enjoy: sport, music and theatre.
What happens next
The campaign continues week by week, with NSS activities on Fridays and Saturdays and MY Bharat units running weekly activities of their own. The 12-week calendar runs through December 2026, so more cyclothons, health camps and youth festivals are on the way. Students who missed this weekend can contact the NSS or MY Bharat unit at their college, or watch for the next local event under the #NashaMuktYuva banner.
For now, the weekend’s message is hard to miss. Nearly a lakh of young Indians spent two days proving that fitness can be fun, community service can be cool, and saying no to drugs is something you do together, out on the street, not alone.
FAQs
What was the Nasha Mukt Yuva weekend event?
On October 30 and 31, 2026, MY Bharat and NSS organised nationwide cyclothons, walkathons and runs under Week 7 of the Nasha Mukt Yuva for Viksit Bharat 100-week campaign, promoting fitness and an addiction-free lifestyle.
How many people took part?
Over 96,700 people participated across more than 200 institutions. Walkathons and runs drew over 23,300 participants, cyclothons drew more than 8,000, and nearly 26,000 people took the Nasha Mukt pledge.
What is the Nasha Mukt Yuva campaign?
It is a 100-week youth campaign launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 2, 2026, built around four pillars: Prevent, Protect, Recover and Lead, with the goal of a drug-free youth for a developed India.
What other activities were part of the weekend?
Street plays engaged over 5,600 people, slogan-writing and musical activities drew more than 11,800, and plogging drives with over 11,400 participants combined fitness with cleanliness along rally routes.
How can students join future events?
Students can contact the NSS or MY Bharat unit at their college, or follow local announcements and the #NashaMuktYuva hashtag for upcoming activities.
India’s youth showed up in force this weekend, on cycles, on foot and on stage. If Week 7 is any indication, the road to a Nasha Mukt Bharat will be busy, noisy and very fit.
