GCAI's YUKTI connects academia, industry, and global law firms to train next-gen lawyers

The General Counsels’ Association of India (GCAI) concluded its flagship national internship, mentoring, and skilling programme Youth Unchained Through Knowledge & Transformative Internships (YUKTI) with a convocation ceremony at Dr Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi.

The Convocation was attended by Supreme Court Justice Pankaj Mithal and Minister of State for Corporate Affairs, Harsh Malhotra alongside eminent members of the judiciary, senior advocates, academicians, general counsel, industry leaders, and policy professionals.

Justice Pankaj Mithal shared reflections from his own professional journey, recounting how discipline, perseverance, and continuous learning shaped his rise from the Bar to the Bench. Emphasising that the legal profession is ultimately a form of public service, he encouraged young lawyers to remain grounded in integrity and patience, noting that platforms like YUKTI provide early exposure to professional realities and instil values essential to strengthening the justice delivery system and the rule of law.

Addressing the gathering, Harsh Malhotra spoke on India’s journey towards Viksit Bharat @2047. He observed that initiatives such as YUKTI play a vital role in shaping future-ready legal professionals by combining structured mentoring, practical exposure, and a deep understanding of governance reforms, in close alignment with the vision of trust-based governance and ease of doing business.

At a YUKTI session, Minister of Law & Justice, Arjun Ram Meghwal, lauded the work done by GCAI in bringing the importance of quality internships to the forefront.

Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha, Dr Sasmit Patra at a session, stressed upon the need for law students to understand corporate law and technology in order to hone entrepreneurial skills.

Former Supreme Court judge, Justice Hima Kohli, outlined the importance of the legal profession for women and their role in shaping the future.

Senior Advocate and President of the Society of Indian Law Firms, Dr Lalit Bhasin, lauded GCAI for initiating YUKTI and achieving scale and quality in its very first version.

Partner, CMS, Babita Ambekar, representing GCAI sponsors, congratulated GCAI for delivering YUKTI and highlighted that international law firms are committed to develop India’s training and development ecosystem

Reflecting on the broader objectives of the initiative, Founder, GCAI, Dr Akhil Prasad noted that YUKTI represents a rare convergence of the Government, judiciary, government, academia, and industry. YUKTI follows a traditional face-to-face format between a mentor mentee, including experiential learning via visits to the Parliament of India, the National War Memorial, the Supreme Court of India, Maruti Suzuki and Wipro.

Founder, GCAI, Dr Sanjeev Gemawat highlighted mentoring and skilling as critical pillars of institutional reform, observing that India’s growth story demands lawyers who are technically proficient, business-aware, ethically grounded, and globally competitive—an outcome that YUKTI consciously seeks to achieve.

Member, GCAI, Rajiv Chauhan said contemporary organizations now require lawyers who can seamlessly integrate legal insight with business understanding, risk assessment, and governance. He observed that YUKTI effectively bridged academic learning with real-world corporate and institutional practice.

The organizers also placed on record their sincere appreciation for the support and participation of leading national and international law firms, including Baker & McKenzie, CMS, Dentons Link Legal, Hogan Lovells, Stewarts Law, Skadden, and Aikyam Law Offices.

Their engagement and thought leadership across the YUKTI academic sessions and the convocation ceremony enriched the programme, strengthened industry–academia collaboration, and reaffirmed the collective commitment of the international legal fraternity towards nurturing future ready legal professionals.

119 law students from 21 universities across India were awarded certificates and gold medals, marking the completion of a multi-week programme focused on practical exposure, mentorship, ethics, governance, dispute resolution, compliance, and emerging areas of law.

Over 70 faculty from various sectors like government, judiciary, international law firms and arbitral forums, senior advocates, general counsels, two audit firms provided training and development opportunities to the students.