MIB launches ‘Gems of India’ Creator Challenge with YouTube, Meta

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has launched the pilot phase of the ‘Gems of India’ Challenge, inviting digital creators to produce short videos about the culture, heritage and distinctive features of their districts.

YouTube and Meta have joined the initiative as partners and will use their creator networks to publicise the challenge and encourage participation.

The challenge will operate through MyWAVES, the citizen-content section of the WAVES OTT platform. Participants can submit videos between one and three minutes in duration from August 1 to August 31, 2026.

The pilot will cover the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Goa, and Ladakh.

Creators can submit videos highlighting local traditions, tourism, history, cultural practices and district-level achievements. The ministry said the initiative would be expanded to other states and Union Territories after reviewing the pilot.

Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Shri Chanchal Kumar acknowledged that “Every district of India has a story waiting to be told, and Gems of India gives our creators the platform to tell it. This is as much about celebrating our youth’s creativity as it is about celebrating the extraordinary diversity of our districts.”

Prasar Bharati, My Bharat, state governments and district administrations will be involved in implementing the pilot. Local educational and cultural institutions are also expected to assist with creator outreach and content development.

Under the proposed award structure, up to 20 creators in each district can receive Rs 50,000 each. One creator from every district will be selected for a state-level award of Rs 2 lakh.

National awards of Rs 5 lakh each will be introduced during the wider rollout of the challenge.

District and state administrations will constitute jury panels to assess the entries. The panels will include representatives from the fields of culture, heritage, tourism, media and academia.

The challenge is part of the ministry’s efforts to expand citizen-generated content on MyWAVES and bring regional stories onto a national digital platform. BuzzInContent