Nava Thakuria
Guwahati, March 21
The three-day annual meeting of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) begins as Sarsanghchalak Dr Mohan Bhagwat and Sarkaryavah Dattatreya Hosabale inaugurated Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha (ABPS) on Friday by offering floral tributes to Bharat Mata at the premises of Janaseva Vidyakendra in Channenahalli of Bengaluru.
RSS Sah Sarkaryavah Mukunda CR addressed the media on the inaugural day of ABPS, where he revealed that the total number of functionaries attending the national meet is 1482.
Every year, the ABPS session starts with paying homage and tributes to prominent personalities of the nation and society, including RSS functionaries, who departed us, stated Mukunda CR adding that the ABPS paid homage to Swami Pranavananda Tirthatthapadar, Pujya Siyaram Baba, Pujya Saint Sugrivanand Maharaj, Shirish Maharaj More, Dr Manmohan Singh, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Dr Rajagopal Chidambaram, Vivek Debroy, MT Vasudevan Nair, Shyam Benegal, Pritish Nandy, SM Krishna, Maharana Mahendra Singh, Kameshwar Chaupal, Tulasi Gowda (known as the Encyclopedia of Forest), Kannada author N D’Souza, actor Sarigama Viji, educationist Doreswamy Naidu, Sukri Bommagouda, former Kshetra Sanghachalak of Dakshin Madhya Kshetra Parvatarao, Purv Vishwa Vibhag Sanyojak Shankar Tatvawadi, Dinanath Batra, Dr Govind Naregal, VHP functionary BN Murthy, former Union Minister Debendra Pradhan with others.
“At the ABPS, most of our time will be spent on analysing and planning Sangh’s work. This year we are celebrating the centenary year of RSS and expanding as well as consolidating. The ABPS will discuss, deliberate and analyse the social impact of its work and bring changes in the society,” said Mukunda CR. Speaking on the highlights of RSS Shakha works, he informed that a total of 83,129 Shakhas are held every day at 51, 570 places which is an increase of over 10,000 Shakhas from last year (when it was 73,646). Weekly Milans have increased by 4,430 from last year, where the total number of Shakhas and Milans is 1,15,276.
The Sah Sarkaryavah laid out the nationwide statistics of the RSS Shakha’s as of 2025 as follows- Total places: 51,570, total Shakha (daily): 83,129, total Milan (weekly): 32,147, total Mandali (monthly): 12,091, total Shakha+Milan+ Mandali: 1,27,367. He informed that while the RSS is working towards expansion of its work during its centenary year, it is concentrating more on rural Mandals. As per the RSS administrative understanding, the country is divided into 58,981 rural Mandals out of which daily Shakhas are happening in 30,717 Mandals and weekly Milans in 9,200 Mandals. The total of 39,917 is an increase of 3,050 compared to last year and an increase of 67%.
Last year, the Sarsanghchalak invited Karyakartas who could spare two full years for the expansion and consolidation of Sangh work. Honouring his call, 2,453 Swayamsevaks, termed Shatabdi Vistaraks, left their homes and dedicated themselves to the expansion and consolidation of Sangh’s work. Another highlight was the increase in the number of youths joining the Sangh work. Every year, lakhs of youth, especially those in the age group of 14-25, join the RSS as Swayamsevaks. A total of 4,415 Prarambhik Vargas (initial camp) was held across the country, where 2,22,962 attended these Vargas, among which 1,63,000 were in the age group of 14-25. More than 20,000 of these attendees were aged over 40.
Every year new students and youth are being added to the RSS and we have a provision for joining the RSS through the website (www.rss.org), he stated. Since 2012, more than 12,72,453 people have shown interest in joining the RSS through the website, among which more than 46,000 were women. Thousands of such women Karyakartas are involved in various activities of Sangh in different spheres. Many, who expressed interest in joining RSS through the website, hail from Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and even abroad. The major takeaway of these statistics is that the RSS is a youth organisation going by the number of people joining it, he asserted.
The Sah Sarkaryavah also briefed the media on the highlights of the annual report that was presented by the Sarkaryavah Hosabale. He informed that Sarsanghchalak’s planned tour program across Bharat took him to prominent places and met prominent people. Recently, the Sarsanghchalak arrived in Arunachal where he visited the Donyi-Polo temple. He also visited the native village of Shaheed Abdul Hamid and released a biography.
The Sarsanghchalak and Sarkaryavah met the heads and top functionaries of Hindu and spiritual organisations with a global presence such as ISCKON, Ramakrishna Mission, BAPS, Bharat Sevashram, Chinmaya Missions in Mumbai. The plight of Hindus in Bangladesh and the ways to address the issues of Hindus in Bharat & abroad and strengthening the society through a collaborative effort were discussed. Such meetings with Dharmic organisations happen once every two years and this was the fifth such meeting. The Sarkaryavah also visited Kanyakumari for a Seva Bharati event, where more than 60,000 women came together who were part of self-help groups from different parts of the country.
He then gave details of the activities of the Seva Vibhag saying that a total of 89,706 service activities are taking place across the country, out of which 40,920 are in the field of education, 17461 are related to medical services, 10,779 in the area of self-reliance, and 20, 546 related to other
activities inspiring social awakening. He informed that the RSS has special initiatives for rural development such as Gram Vikas (rural development) and Gau Samrakshan.
Special attention is being paid to Samajik Samarasta (social harmony) where RSS Swayamsevaks have concentrated on areas needing changes due to some unfortunate incidents. At 1084 places, the Swayamsevaks put efforts to eradicate wrong social practices like banning entry to Mandirs and prohibiting drinking water from a single source. Swayamsevaks have been working to stop such abnormal practices and bring harmony to the society. At more than 260 places, Swayamsevaks helped sanitary workers with food, hygiene and medical examinations.
As every year, an analysis of the national scenario is made by Sarkaryavah Hosbale. Among the highlights he listed, was the Mahakumbh of Prayagraj, which heightened cultural pride and aroused self-confidence for the entire nation. This special Mahakumbh gave a wonderful glimpse of Bharat’s spirituality and cultural heritage as well as made us realise the inner nobility of our society. Uttar Pradesh State government and the Union government deserve congratulations from the entire nation for creating and running the appropriate and smooth infrastructure and management system of this huge Kumbh. During the Mahakumbh, many Sangh-inspired institutions and organizations performed various types of Seva, Dharmic, cultural, educational, and ideological events.
Netra Kumbh, organised by Saksham, arranged for free eye tests, the distribution of spectacles and cataract surgery, if required, for the people coming to Kumbh. Many hospitals, health institutions and other social organisations with a spirit of service extended full cooperation there. Providing the details of the activity, he said that 2,37,964 people benefited from the free eye checks, while 1,63,652 received free spectacles and 17,069 underwent cataract surgery for free. More than 300 eye specialists and 2800 health workers supported the Seva work which lasted for 53 days.
Another noteworthy activity was the ‘Ek Thaila–Ek Thali Campaign’, organised by Paryavaran Samrakshan Gatividhi in collaboration with many organisations. This campaign, aimed at not using thermocol plates or polythene bags in Kumbh, led to a large collection of steel plates
and cloth bags across the country. The Karyakartas collected a total of 14,17,064 plates and 13,46,128 bags from 7258 centres by 2241 institutions and organisations, which were distributed in various Pandals in Kumbh. This campaign was a unique experiment in itself and hugely successful in creating environmental awareness and taking the idea of a clean Kumbh to the mass people.
Speaking on the statement issued by the Sarkaryavah on the occasion of 300th birth anniversary of renowned Lokmata Ahilya Devi Holkar, he said that she was an embodiment of qualities like ideal administration, judicial reforms Dharmic faith, motherly affection towards the people, and impeccable character. In light of that many effective and wide-ranging programs were organized to celebrate the anniversary at many places in the country. Many social and educational institutions made successful efforts to bring the inspiring personality of Lokmata in front of society through various types of events.
Addressing the situation in Manipur in the annual report, he conveyed that the Myanmar bordering State has been going through a disturbed situation for the past 20 months. Due to incidents of widespread violence between the two communities there, mutual distrust and animosity have arisen. The people have had to suffer many kinds of hardships. However, the action-oriented decisions taken by the Union government at the political and administrative level including bringing the President’s rule, have raised hopes towards the improvement of the situation. But it will take a long time for a natural atmosphere of cordiality and trust to emerge, he added.
During this entire period, the Sangh and Sangh inspired social organizations worked together to provide relief and succor to the people affected by the violence. They have also maintained constant contact with various communities and tried to control the situation by giving the message of maintaining patience. All these efforts for harmony are still going on and will take a long time. The Sangh’s earnest request is that all the communities of Manipur should leave aside their anguish & distrusts and make a conscious effort for social unity with mutual brotherhood.
He further highlighted that many forces pose a challenge to national unity and integrity by using one or the other divisive agendas in the name of language, delimitation, region, north-south divide, etc. However, RSS Karyakartas and many from the Vichar Parivar are working towards resolving such divisive issues, especially in the southern States.
The press briefing was followed by a question & answer session with the media representatives. Answering a question on Sangh’s efforts in bringing peace in Manipur, he disclosed that the Sangh’s effort is more about bringing leadership and people of the tribal groups, Meities and Kukis, together and encouraging them to discuss and come to a common understanding. Sangh is helping the people of Manipur by bringing communities together. Many leaders of both communities are in touch with the RSS and meetings have been held in Imphal, Guwahati and Delhi to bring harmony. There are other aspects to the complex problem, but Sangh is trying its best to influence and connect people. Further, 100s of relief camps are run by Sangh Swayamsevaks for refugees thrown from their own homes where food, shelter and essentials are provided. There is some hope now after the President’s rule is imposed but it will take time.
Regarding the question on north-south divide, he said that most of the issues are politically motivated. Regarding delimitation, the Union home minister stated that it would be done based on the ratio i.e. the ratio of Lok Sabha seats currently in southern States will be maintained. Hence, the RSS has nothing much to say on this. However, the RSS believes that politically motivated actions like removing the Rupee symbol and raking up language issues must be addressed not by political leaders but by social and community leaders. The RSS stands for justice and believes that all issues can be resolved harmoniously, he said.
On the status of RSS@100 and the demography of the Swayamsevaks since 1925, he said that there are more than one crore Swayamsevaks in the country. The Swayamsevaks work in various sections of society such as in social service, trade unions, farmers, etc. Most of those who join RSS are between the ages of 12-14 and 20-15 years. Even though many join RSS even after 40, most join as kids. There has been a rise in the number of new Swayamsevaks joining the organisation. In Tamil Nadu, where we were lacking, now getting new cadres and the number of
Shakhas have crossed 4000. Bihar and Odisha too, where we had a limited presence earlier, now witnessing an increase in the Swayamsevak numbers. It must be noted that there is no opposition to the RSS expansion work in any part of the country and even if there is opposition in some parts, it is not due to religious reasons but due to political reasons. We believe this can be solved by consultations, he added.
Answering a question on the language issue, he said that the RSS believes that Matru Bhasha (mother tongue) should be used not only in education but in all aspects of our daily lives. The Sangh has passed a resolution on the Matru Bhasha and it’s beneficial if one learns multiple languages. It is ideal if one knows Matru Bhasha, a regional language which is the language of the place where we live, and a career language such as English which is for professional purposes. The Sarsanghchalak conveyed in formal and informal gatherings that we must use Matru Bhasha in our daily lives and people should learn languages from other regions too. Regarding the resolution of the plight of Hindus in Bangladesh, Sah Sarkaryavah said that the resolution will be taken by ABPS and the same will be shared to the media.
