Draft:Amith Amarnath

Amith Amarnath

Mr Amith Amarnath is an Indian lawyer and social activist based in Bengaluru, Karnataka. He is the founder and president of Youth for Parivarthan (YFP), a youth-led weekend civic organization established in 2014 that works on urban cleanliness, environmental conservation, education and community welfare.

Mr Amith began the initiative while he was studying law, bringing together a small group of young volunteers to clean and restore neglected public spaces in Bengaluru. The organization's work began several months before the launch of the Government of India's Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in October 2014. Its stated motto is "Stop Complaining, Start Acting."

Through Youth for Parivarthan, Amith has promoted citizen participation in civic activities, particularly by encouraging students and working professionals to volunteer on weekends. The organisation initially became known for its "spot-fix" model, in which garbage-filled or neglected public spaces were cleaned and subsequently beautified through painting, murals, landscaping and other improvements.

Early life and education

Amith was born and brought up in Bengaluru. He studied law at Christ University in Bengaluru. While he was a law student, he became concerned about the condition of public spaces and the accumulation of garbage in parts of the city.

In 2014, at the age of about 21, Amith and a group of friends organized a clean-up of a children's park in Banashankari that had become a dumping ground. The group cleaned the park and subsequently shared photographs of the transformation on social media. The response from residents and prospective volunteers encouraged them to undertake similar projects in other parts of Bengaluru.

Contemporary accounts describe Amith's early work as an attempt to move beyond complaints about civic problems and encourage citizens to participate directly in addressing them. The New Indian Express reported in 2015 that Amith , then a law student, had helped organize a group of young volunteers who spent their weekends cleaning and beautifying public spaces.

Youth for Parivarthan

Amith founded Youth for Parivarthan in 2014 with a group of friends. The organization initially concentrated on garbage-prone areas, public spaces and neglected footpaths in Bengaluru.

The group's first projects involved identifying locations where garbage was regularly dumped, coordinating with civic workers to remove the waste, and then cleaning and painting the area. The organization called these interventions "spot fixes". Volunteers also used murals, artwork, plants, benches and cleanliness messages as ways of discouraging the recurrence of dumping and other forms of misuse.

In its early years, the organization worked with the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and local residents. An NDTV report described how YFP volunteers worked with civic authorities to remove garbage from black spots and subsequently painted the locations. The organization also involved local residents in maintaining the transformed spaces.

An Economic Times report published in 2016 noted that Amarnath and six friends had registered the organization five months before the launch of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. At that stage, YFP had already undertaken dozens of spot-fix projects in Bengaluru.

The scale of the initiative subsequently increased. In 2022, Government of India material associated with Mann Ki Baat described Amith as the founder of Youth for Parivarthan and recorded that the organisation had undertaken more than 390 spot fixes during its first eight years.

As of 2026, Youth for Parivarthan states that its volunteers have transformed more than 450 locations and that more than 50,000 volunteers have participated in its activities. These figures are organisation-reported.

Civic and environmental activities

Amith's work through Youth for Parivarthan has expanded from neighborhood clean-up drives to a range of environmental and community initiatives.

Spot Fix

The Spot Fix programme became the organisation's principal early activity. Volunteers identify locations affected by garbage dumping or neglect, coordinate the removal of waste and then transform the site through cleaning, painting, murals, plants, seating and other improvements.

The approach was intended not only to clean a location but also to discourage the recurrence of dumping by changing how people viewed and used the space. NDTV reported examples in which painted walls and public artwork were used to discourage open urination, poster pasting and garbage dumping.

Government school projects

Youth for Parivarthan later expanded its work to government schools. Its projects have included improving school infrastructure, painting educational murals and providing educational resources.>

The organisation currently lists government-school upliftment among its principal areas of work and reports projects involving more than 20 schools.

Recyclothon

Amith has also been associated with Recyclothon, an initiative focused on collecting used school notebooks, recovering unused pages and converting them into new notebooks for students.

The initiative began in 2019. According to South First, the programme was developed to address the disposal of notebooks containing unused pages while simultaneously helping students in rural Karnataka. The organisation collected notebooks, segregated usable sheets and rebound them into new books.

Bangalore Mirror reported that during the 2023 campaign, YFP collected approximately 2.5 tonnes of used notebooks and produced about 3,300 new notebooks, which were distributed to students in government schools in Karnataka.

Community welfare

Youth for Parivarthan has subsequently expanded into social welfare activities. Its programmes include community food initiatives intended to provide meals to people in need, as well as blood-donation activities and educational support.

The organisation's current website lists blood-donation drives, scholarships and other community programmes alongside its environmental work.

Other initiatives

Initiatives associated with Amith and Youth for Parivarthan have included Annasankalpa, a community-kitchen initiative aimed at providing food to people in need; Bleed Green, a menstrual-awareness programme involving both men and women; and Knock Out, a women's self-defence initiative.

Youth participation and civic engagement

A central theme of Amith's work has been youth participation in civic affairs. Youth for Parivarthan operates primarily through volunteers, including students and working professionals who participate in activities during weekends.

Amith has described the organisation's purpose as extending beyond the physical transformation of public spaces to changing attitudes towards civic responsibility. In an interview reproduced in Government of India material in 2022, he said that the organisation sought to change the perception that public spaces were solely the government's responsibility and to encourage citizens to take ownership of their surroundings.

The organisation's work has consequently included partnerships with educational institutions and opportunities for students to participate in volunteering and internships. South First reported that YFP had worked with engineering colleges and offered opportunities for students to participate in its activities.

Amith has also spoken at educational institutions and other forums about youth participation, civic responsibility, volunteering and environmental issues.

Recognition and public profile

Mann Ki Baat

Youth for Parivarthan was featured in material associated with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Mann Ki Baat programme.

Government of India publications subsequently reproduced an account of the organisation's origins and its work in Bengaluru. The September 2022 Mann Ki Baat material identified Amith Amarnath as the founder of Youth for Parivarthan and presented his interview with Doordarshan on the role of youth in transforming communities.

The Mann Ki Baat material describes Amith's decision, while still a law student, to gather volunteers and undertake "spot-fixing" projects in Bengaluru. It also records his view that citizens should participate in maintaining public spaces rather than treating cleanliness solely as the responsibility of government authorities.

The Government of India's publication also notes that the organisation's work received recognition following its mention in Mann Ki Baat.

Civic partnerships

Youth for Parivarthan has worked with municipal authorities and other civic bodies on public-space improvement projects. Earlier reports documented cooperation with BBMP and local ward representatives, while more recent reports have described joint activities involving YFP volunteers and city civic authorities.

In 2025, The Times of India reported a YFP project involving approximately 150 volunteers and civic staff at a large garbage dumping site in Padmanabhanagar.

In 2026, The Times of India reported another YFP project involving volunteers and civic officials that transformed a public urination hotspot near NIMHANS through cleaning, painting and public-awareness artwork.

International youth activities

Amith has represented India at international youth events, including youth festivals in Russia and Nepal, according to biographical information associated with his work.>

A 2026 report associated with Youth for Parivarthan states that Amith was selected as part of the Indian delegation to the International Youth Festival in Yekaterinburg, Russia, representing Youth for Parivarthan and serving as Karnataka State Head of the National Preparatory Committee.

Other interests

Amith is also known for his interest in reading and music and encourages people to come together and jam.

Public speaking

Amith has participated in lectures, interviews and public discussions concerning youth participation, civic responsibility, environmental conservation and community action.

His public message has frequently centred on the idea expressed in Youth for Parivarthan's motto: "Stop Complaining, Start Acting." His interviews have emphasised direct citizen participation and the role of young people in addressing local problems.

Personal philosophy

Amith's civic work has been associated with the idea that citizens can contribute to improving their communities through small, consistent actions.

The principle is reflected in the motto of Youth for Parivarthan, "Stop Complaining, Start Acting." In interviews, Amith has argued that cleaning a public space is only one part of the process and that sustained improvement requires local residents to develop a sense of ownership of the space.