The Mumbai event united voices from the legal fraternity, civil society, and the corporate world to contemplate what it truly means to give every child a school worthy of their aspirations.
Mumbai, June 27, 2026. In a ceremony that marked two decades of quiet, determined effort, former Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud officially inaugurated the 10,000th government school to be transformed under the YUVA Unstoppable, an achievement rooted in the unwavering conviction that every child enrolled in a public school deserves to learn and grow in an environment that truly reflects their worth. The occasion, hosted in a joint initiative with the Financial Express at Aryan Education Society High School, a municipal school in Mumbai, drew together celebrated author Amish Tripathi, media entrepreneur Anant Goenka, and an array of senior corporate representatives from institutions including HDFC Bank, Nuvama Limited, Tata Capital Limited, Tata Communications Ltd, IBM, Appasamy Associates, Kenvue, Bangalore International Airport, Ganesh Housing, HDFC ERGO General Insurance, ICICI Bank, Chambers of Kartik Seth, DP World, The Blended Finance, Reckitt Benckiser, Stockify Fintech Private Limited, Evonik Industries, Equinix India, Teleperformance, and SMBC, alongside the very students and communities whose futures the initiative exists to serve.
A Journey That Began As A Volunteering Movement With One School in 2005
YUVA Unstoppable holds a place among India’s top ten NGOs and has built a well-established record of reaching over 10 million people across education, environment, healthcare, and livelihood verticals, backed by more than 100 corporate partners engaged through CSR and philanthropic programmes. The organisation has drawn encouragement and recognition from luminaries such as Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (Former President of India), Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, Zerodha Co-founder Nikhil Kamath, spiritual leader Sister Shivani, and Biocon Group’s Founder and Executive Chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw. One of its recently transformed schools was inaugurated by the Hon’ble Vice President of India, Shri C.P. Radhakrishnan.
For Amitabh Shah, Founder and Chief Inspiration at YUVA Unstoppable, who famously walked away from a Wall Street placement at JP Morgan following his MBA at Yale to instead engage with the realities of India’s public schools, the day represented the culmination of a journey that started with a single institution in 2005. Reflecting on the milestone, Amitabh Shah, expressed his deep sense of gratitude:
“Ten thousand schools is a milestone that fills my heart with gratitude, for every partner who trusted us, every volunteer who gave their time, and every child who reminded us why we began. But if anything, it has only deepened our responsibility. India’s children deserve nothing less than our very best, and we are just getting started.”
Designed to Be Felt: A Morning of Immersive Impact
The event was crafted as an experience to be absorbed rather than merely observed. Arriving guests were personally welcomed and guided through the newly upgraded school facility, taking in its functional washroom block, technology-enabled smart classroom, and STEM laboratory, before being led into an auditorium already alive with students animatedly presenting their own STEM innovations.
Among the most affecting segments of the morning was one in which beneficiaries of Yuva Unstoppable’s work across multiple programmes, children, farmers, mothers, anganwadi workers, and a janitor, took to the stage in turn to describe the changes that had unfolded in their lives. Their testimonies grounded the proceedings in the lived reality that the organisation has always sought to serve.
Distinguished Voices on Education, AI, and India’s Future
Author Amish Tripathi addressed the gathering with his characteristic blend of warmth and clarity, capturing the essence of the occasion in remarks that resonated deeply with those present. He observed that while the world is often preoccupied with chasing wealth, true success follows when we pursue knowledge and excellence first, a lesson, he noted, embodied by Amitabh Shah and Yuva Unstoppable's commitment to creating opportunities for children across India to learn and thrive.
The programme also featured a substantive panel discussion exploring how artificial intelligence and STEM education are likely to shape the next generation of Indians. The session was moderated by Samiksha, a YUVA Scholar, and energised by a steady stream of questions from the more than a hundred students who had assembled in the auditorium. Contributions from senior representatives of Appasamy Associates, HDFC ERGO, Nuvama, and DP World anchored the discussion in practical relevance which also kept honest, as much as anything, by the curiosity and directness of the student audience. In this regard, Annaswamy Vaidheesh, Chairperson of Appasamy Associates, remarked: "AI is transforming the world. My only advice is to be curious, continue to adapt, and use this technology ethically. Values and character are very important."
Charkha of Change Award: Honouring the Architects of Transformation
The occasion also saw distinguished corporate leaders recognised with the “Charkha of Change Award” 2026, presented jointly by Justice Chandrachud and Anant Goenka. The choice of the charkha that is Gandhi’s enduring symbol of patient, dignified work, was deliberate, reflecting the organisation’s long-held belief that meaningful transformation is built slowly and steadily, one school at a time.
A Fireside Conversation on Philanthropy and Viksit Bharat 2047
The afternoon drew its deepest emotional resonance from a fireside exchange between Anant Goenka and Justice Chandrachud, in which both reflected candidly on the nature and purpose of philanthropy and on India’s collective aspirations for Viksit Bharat 2047. Moving fluidly between the personal and the panoramic, the conversation reached its close when Justice Chandrachud addressed himself directly to the children seated in the auditorium.
What followed was a spirited rapid-fire exchange in which corporate leaders put their questions directly to Justice Chandrachud, lending the occasion the character of genuine dialogue for change. In this regard, Justice Dr. D.Y. Chandrachud, Former Chief Justice of India, remarked: "When you talk of giving, give your time and attention, more than anything else. Mentorship is going to be even more critical for our children and future generations. My mother always told us, 'Don't be unfair. Don't be untruthful to yourself. You have to answer to your conscience.' True transformation lies in diluting your own sense of importance and focusing on others."
It was a fitting note on which to draw a morning that had, from the outset, insisted on keeping every conversation grounded in reality. Yuva Unstoppable was founded on the belief that transforming a school is, in the same act, transforming a community. Ten thousand schools on, that conviction remains unchanged. The 10,000th school is not a destination. It is a marker on a road still being built.
About Yuva Unstoppable
After completing his Master's degree at Yale University, Mr. Amitabh Shah, Founder of Yuva Unstoppable and a Viksit Bharat Ambassador, turned down a Wall Street offer from JP Morgan to work on the real streets of India and establish Yuva Unstoppable, one of India's top 10 NGOs. Amitabh is also the youngest Indian to receive the U.S. Government's Ellis Island Medal of Honor, an honour previously bestowed upon global icons including President Bill Clinton, President George Bush, Muhammad Ali, Paula Abdul, Indra Nooyi, and Malala Yousafzai. Yuva Unstoppable's work has also been recognised by former Presidents of India, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and Shri Ram Nath Kovind.
Our interventions include Education (WASH facilities, digital classrooms, solar electrification, rainwater harvesting, modern sports facilities, STEM labs, scholarships, and early childhood care); Health and Nutrition (transforming anganwadis, providing nutritional support to children and pregnant and new mothers, and vaccination drives); Employability (placement-focused skilling for youth in soft skills as well as domain-specific skills across IT/ITES, BFSI, AI, ML, and more); and Environment (agroforestry, afforestation, water body restoration, solar street lighting, urban heat stress mitigation, and carbon credits).
Impact at a Glance:
10 million+ beneficiaries empowered across 25 Indian states
10,000+ schools and pre-schools transformed with WASH facilities, STEM labs, and smart classrooms, boosting attendance by 15% and improving learning outcomes fourfold, as validated by the London School of Economics
7,000+ students supported through scholarships
1,50,000+ youth skilled for jobs in AI/ML, IT/ITES, BFSI, and manufacturing
32 lakh trees planted across approximately 8,000 hectares, supporting 6,000+ farmers and sequestering approximately 1.5 lakh metric tonnes of carbon
CSR projects implemented with partners including HDFC Bank, IBM, Disney, EY, PwC, Adani, Torrent, Bank of America, and the Gates Foundation. KPMG serves as the audit partner.
For a quick overview of Yuva Unstoppable's impact, watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9elW8E-2cR4
For CSR collaborations, connect with:
kuldeep.arora@yuvaunstoppable.org
To learn more about Yuva Unstoppable, visit: