As it heads for its centennial on Vijayadashami Day on October 2, 2025, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has announced plans to increase the number of shakhas, or branches, from over 83,000 to 1,00,000 during the year.
The landmark year will not be an occasion for celebrations, but a period to introspect on the organisation’s journey and plans for the future, said Vitthalrao Kamble, Konkan Prant Karyawah, RSS, at a press conference in Mumbai on Wednesday. The meeting was organised to share insights on the aspects of the annual Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha held in Bengaluru between March 21 and 23.
One of the main outcomes at the Bengaluru meeting was the resolution condemning the atrocities against Hindus and other minority groups in Bangladesh after the change of regime. “We appealed to the world to support the Hindus of Bangladesh,” said Kamble, who said that what happened in Bangladesh was a gross violation of human rights that the world needs to take note of. The meeting, which was attended by over 1443 representatives from across the country, also paid tributes to Maharani Abbakka of Ullal, Karnataka, who repelled Portuguese incursions in the area, on her 500th birth anniversary.
The centenary phase will focus on introspection, societal support, and dedication to national service, said Kamble. The organisation will work on five principles -of transformation, or panch parivartan – self-reliant system, environment conservation, social harmony, family, and civic duty.
Kamble said that the events marking the anniversary will be decentralised, and local units will hold rallies in their uniforms on Vijayadashami. “This will be the first of the anniversary events. The programmes will be expanded after this,” added Kamble, who declined to comment on the organisation’s stand on the agitation to demolish Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s tomb.
Among the projects during the anniversary year will be programmes for the youth, ‘Hindu Sammelans’ in every locality, and building up a corps of one crore volunteers to reach areas where they do not have a presence.
