The British Deputy High Commission, Mumbai, and think tank Observer Research Foundation (ORF), held its debut Young Thinkers' Conference (YTC) on Tuesday, at a Bandra Kurla Complex hotel. The conference had a full-on pow wow in the afternoon, with representatives from Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and the Congress. 'Youth & Civic Engagement: A new brand of politics or a new same-old?' saw moderator British High Commission's Kieran Drake skillfully steer the one-hour interactive session, which was about whether youth should get into politics, and if so, how.

Alka Lamba, MLA, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) said she cut her political teeth when she was 18, on student politics. "Today, I have completed 25 years in Indian politics. I had Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi as inspirations. But my son, who is 20, has not even registered as a voter. He said that nothing inspires me to be in the political system." Lamba cautioned her young audience that politics was, "a full time job and I do admit it is difficult for an ordinary person to enter politics. I took 25 years to become an MLA."