IELTS Reading Fill in the Blanks Practice

Young turks’ appetite for politics

Long overshadowed by mainstream media and national level parliamentary politics, youth
involvement in politics in Nepal has only recently become a matter of heated discussion. The
reasons behind youth politics having a backstage minuscule role in bringing policy-level changes
may be blamed partly to failure of youths to recognize potential of growth and opportunities here in
Nepal and raise their voices and actions or their undying obsession to take a chance with third-
world-dreams rooting out of different foreign ideologies. Or a failure in part of respective authorities
to carve out elite manpower dedicated to bringing socioeconomic changes through ground-level
local politics.

Stats show the literacy rate of youths between the age group of 15-24 in Nepal is about 87 percent
(UNESCO). And economically inactive population in the age group 16-25 stands at 94 percent in
males and 61 percent in female youths (MoYS). They are engaged in academia but with less social
and civic involvement. It can be very well argued that Nepal does have an untapped potential of
youths who if aware about their roles and opportunities can play a big part in transforming the
country which has long been sacrificing innovators, change-bringers and genuine politicians in the
form of brain drain.

Fascinatingly, there exists a generation of youths in politics though small in figures but with ample
courage and leadership qualities. They are concerned youths motivated by their own will and
conscience dedicated to serving society and their friends not because for attention or power but for
love of their homeland.

Following in the footsteps of acclaimed CPN-UML leader late Madan Bhandari, 22-year-old
Sushant Sharma Banjara of Eastern Region Campus based in Dharan is a youth leader of All Nepal
National Free Student Union (ANNFSU) affiliated to CPN-UML and who has already completed his
term of party’s campus secretary of at an age of 20.

Every leader must be able to hold a vision if nothing else; vis-a-vis that an enthusiastic student of
agricultural engineering, Banjara has prioritized investment in agriculture as the only way to upscale
nation’s wealth. With an ideological tilt towards reformed Marxism initiated in Nepal by late
communist Leader Madan Bhandari, Banjara believes that politics is a powerful medium to
institutionalize change by utilizing it as a platform which encourages innovative breakthroughs.

He holds a belief that, “To wait for someone to initiate changes that matter is an extremely unwise
move.” This particular belief helped Banjara to kick start his political career and made him bat eyes
on issues concerning community and campus. As a youth politician his duty is to play a role of a
moderator when it comes to uniting community by promoting coherence and mutual understanding
through inter-cultural programs based at campus level.

Banjara’s typical day starts with newspapers and ends in party level meetings focused on improving
overall quality measures of the campus and addressing student issues. During his tenure at the
campus, Banjara and his union brought innovative reforms to address concerns of students. For

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 Young turks’ appetite for politics
instance, they introduced an Electronic Attendance System to monitor lecturers’ presence. Many
government-run campuses around our country have a common plight i.e. disinterest among teachers
to run classes on a regular basis. After implementation of an attendance monitoring system, lecturers
were forced to undertake designated responsibility. Not only that Banjara and his friends made
authorities install a high quality WIFI service which serves as an important infrastructure
particularly in engineering institutions.

When asked about what he would like to change, Banjara says, “Wrong ideologies and wrong
leaders have hindered our community from reaching any targeted benchmark. If the intention of a
leader is transformed positively, a community can be driven to prosperity and that is where I would
like to start.”

However, many a time youths have been blamed for unwanted nuisances and disturbances in classes
around campuses raising questions on benefits of youth involvement in party politics. As for
Banjara, ineffective results are a product of high level influence and conflict of interest. If the
ambitions or vested interest of a particular group is against common welfare then, according to
Banjara, youths would be better off without any involvement in party politics.

Out of a long list Banjara remembers educational awareness projects, library campaigns, blood
donation programs and forestation program as being most effective program in the community.

Sanjay Chaudhary, 20, is a college student and President of Biratnagar ward no 4 committee of
Youth Association Nepal. His fascination towards leadership began all the way back during his
school days when Nepal was undergoing a major political overhaul after King Gyanendra was
forced to abdicate following the people’s movement of 2006.

He found politics intriguing, interesting and potentially powerful. He works to promote youths and
their agendas on the fabrics of mainstream politics. His work as ward president is to reach out to
youths and spread awareness about how politics works in the fringes, how politics is shaping up the
present and future. He holds regular seminar sessions giving youths an insight into the fray of the
modern world.

He organizes sporting events like football and cricket to give young eager and effervescent people a
platform to showcase and manifest their talent. He organizes blood donation programs as a
campaign to promote and articulate the knowledge of giving blood for the needy.

When queried about the credibility of a party-based involvement of youths, he answered gracefully,
“A youth has the liberty to choose, to choose willingly. A youth is not a wasted one who marches on
the roads and alleys holding and waving flags. It is a core misconception ruling the conscience of the
society. He expands himself, explores the multi-dimension politics has in stake. A youth who keeps
himself away from politics is the one to blame for when adversity strikes and people howl for the
lack of young people in the political spectrum.”

One of these youths could very well be in top leadership position in the future. Watch this space!

Complete the sentences below.

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Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

1 An overwhelming proportion of men between the ages of 16 and 25 in Nepal are

_______________ dormant.

2 Sushant Sharma Banjara has served as the _______________ of his college’s student union.

3 According to Banjara, a country cannot become affluent unless it increases funding in

_______________.

4 Electronic Attendance System has been adopted by Eastern Region Campus to check whether
_______________ are present in classrooms.

5 Due to political transformations in his country, Sanjay Chaudhary first became interested in
politics when he was in _______________.

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