RSS to increase women's participation, matter to be discussed in annual meet

Sangh joint general secretary Manmohan Vaidya that in a year’s time, there have been over 6,160 new shakhas across 3,700 locations

On the first day of its annual meet, leaders of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh said that they will discuss involving more women in their programmes. Continuing with its resistance to accommodating women in its shakhas even in its centenary year, Sangh joint general secretary Manmohan Vaidya said increasing participation of women in social awareness programmes of the RSS will be discussed at the organisation’s annual general body meeting.

Vaidya said that in a year’s time, there have been over 6,160 new shakhas across 3,700 locations, a rise of 30 per cent in weekly shakhas and an increase of over 20 per cent in shakha mandalis. In the six years, he added, the RSS has received over 7.5 lakh requests online to join the organisation.

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At the meet, which is being held in Haryana’s Panipat, leaders also paid tribute to several people who passed away in the last year, including Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Sharad Yadav, activist Ela Bhatt, writer Mrinalini Joshi, actor Satish Kaushik, and PM Modi’s mother Hiraben Modi.

At the briefing, replying to a question on the engagement of women in the various programmes and activities of the RSS, Vaidya said the Rashtriya Sevika Samiti is an arm of the Sangh primarily for women and their development. “Increasing the participation of women in social awareness, awakening and social change works of Sangh will be discussed in this meeting,” Vaidya told reporters.

On the first day of the three day meet, a proposal to brainstorm on development schemes in the 75th year of Independence, and a special reference on the 200th anniversary of Maratha king Shivaji ascension to the throne will be passed, he added. Special references will also be made on Arya Samaj founder Dayanand Saraswati’s 200th birth year and the 2550th death anniversary of Jain spiritual guru Mahavir Jain, he added.

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While the Sangh had set out to have shakhas across 1 lakh locations in the last few years, the implementation was marred by the Covid-19 pandemic, he said. Presently, across 42,613 locations, there are 68,651 daily shakhas and 26,877 weekly ones, and 10,412 shakha mandalis. In all, shakhas are held, weekly or daily, in over 71,355 locations and he reiterated the RSS’s plan to increase it to 1 lakh locations.

“The shakha is a programme to inculcate some collective qualities and to practise some qualities collectively,” Vaidya said.

He added that internally, the Sangh has divided the country into 911 districts, of which they have a presence across 901 districts. “Of the country’s 6,663 development blocks or tehsils, which the RSS calls khand, we have a presence in over 88% tehsils. And, in over 26,498 of the country’s 59,326 mandals, the Sangh has a presence,” Vaidya said.