Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Monday said Parliaments have the responsibility to “listen to young voices”, underlining the importance of “harnessing the aspirations of the youth” in the process of nation-building.Speaking at the inauguration of the two-day BRICS Parliamentary Forum hosted by India at Parliament House, Birla said: “Parliaments had a vital responsibility to listen to young voices, understand their hopes and concerns, and create pathways through which their energy, creativity and capabilities could be channelled into nation-building.”He said youths are now equipped with growing access to quality education and technological knowledge, alongside an immense desire to innovate, excel and contribute to society.“The aspirations of the youth must be met with meaningful opportunities, dignity and an enabling environment in which their talents could flourish,” he said.The Speaker said young people were not merely an investment in their individual futures but a commitment to the collective destiny of nations. Parliaments, he said, were living institutions that must evolve in step with the changing aspirations of the people.“Their strength lay not merely in their Constitutional authority but also in their ability to foster constructive dialogue, build consensus, uphold transparency and remain steadfastly accountable to the citizens they represent,” he said.Welcoming the BRICS parliamentary leaders, Birla said the diversity of the BRICS nations was not a constraint but an asset. “By sharing experiences, exchanging best practices and learning from one another’s institutional strengths, their parliaments could collectively devise innovative responses to shared challenges. Such sustained engagement, he said, would help lay the foundations of a more equitable, inclusive and peaceful world,” a Lok Sabha Secretariat statement said.Story continues below this ad“Parliaments, as vibrant expressions of the people’s will, could serve as bridges of understanding, strengthen mutual confidence, ease international tensions and help advance peaceful and constructive responses to global challenges,” Birla said.Calling for renewed commitment among BRICS member countries, the Speaker urged them to transform experience into joint action, understanding into enduring trust, and dialogue into concrete and meaningful cooperation.The Speaker noted that the adoption of the joint statement at the BRICS Summit earlier this year marked a significant milestone, and now the challenge was to translate the commitments into outcomes. He said that BRICS had the added responsibility of amplifying the voice of the Global South.Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha Harivansh also addressed the gathering. He highlighted the role of BRICS, saying it represents around 49.5% of the world’s population.Story continues below this adThe theme of the 12th edition of the BRICS Parliamentary Forum is “Strengthening Parliaments for People-Centric Development”. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also interacted with the BRICS Parliamentary leaders on Monday.“The two-day Forum would provide an important platform for comprehensive deliberations on four interconnected pillars — resilience, innovation, cooperation and sustainability — each essential to strengthening democratic institutions and advancing inclusive development in an increasingly interconnected world,” the Lok Sabha Secretariat statement said.(With PTI inputs)