Telangana BJP president N. Ramchander Rao on Tuesday said that Gen Z and the youth in the country believe in democracy, development and nationalism, even as he expressed concern over attempts by some political parties to replicate protest styles seen in countries such as Nepal and Bangladesh.

India had withstood several invasions — from the Mughals to the British — yet its ethos, culture and civilisational values remained intact. “That is the strength of this country,” he said, adding that the present generation has seen the work, commitment and vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and stands by him.

Mr. Rao maintained that the need of the hour was not socialism or communism but nationalism. “Every youngster must be guided by nationalism and love for the country,” he said, citing countries such as Japan and Israel as examples of nations that have built strength through a strong sense of national identity.

Addressing the NaMo Gen Z Conclave at RTC Bhavan, he also criticised Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, accusing the government of failing the youth and questioned the status of key promises such as a job calendar, fee reimbursement and unemployment allowance.

The BJP leader alleged that the government was focused on “’commissions and contracts’ and had not delivered on the aspirations of young people. Though Telangana was formed with hopes of jobs and opportunities, both the BRS and Congress governments had failed to meet these expectations.

Calling on young people to oppose what he described as a betrayal by the State government, Mr. Rao expressed confidence that youth here are ‘nationalist by nature’ and seek development, adding that delimitation could create more opportunities for them in politics.

Highlighting the Centre’s initiatives, he said the Modi government had focused on enabling youth to become job creators through programmes such as Startup India, Stand-Up India, Skill India and Mudra Yojana. Citing growth in the education sector, he said medical colleges were increased from 387 to 818 and MBBS seats from about 51,000 to 1.28 lakh.

Similarly, IIT student strength had risen from 65,000 to 1.35 lakh, while the number of IIITs and IISERs had also expanded. Higher education enrolment had increased from 3.42 crore to over 4.46 crore plus unemployment rate had declined from around 6% in 2014 to 3.1%, below the global average of 4.8%, added the BJP leader.