RSS To Expand Shakhas After Centenary Outreach
The RSS plans to expand shakhas and social work after reaching over 10 crore households during its centenary year, with Telangana reporting 3,492 shakhas at 2,112 locations.
Having reached over 10 crore households and nearly 3.9 lakh villages during its centenary year, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) now plans to convert this outreach into a long‑term expansion of shakhas, family contact and social work across the country. The organisation will formally conclude its 100th year with the Vijayadashami Utsav at Reshimbagh, Nagpur, on October 20, where Sarsanghchalak Dr Mohan Bhagwat will deliver the annual address at 7.40 am.
During the centenary year, the RSS conducted a special 20‑day campaign from September 20 to October 10. It organised social gatherings nationwide and held more than 62,000 Vijayadashami Utsavs, with over 32 lakh swayamsevaks participating in uniform through rallies and public meetings.
Under the Griha Sampark Abhiyan, volunteers visited households and discussed the Panch Parivartan agenda — social harmony, family enlightenment, civic responsibility, environmental protection and a Swadeshi way of life. The RSS also held lakhs of mandal‑level and locality‑level meetings to take its message into neighbourhood discussions.
A senior functionary said the organisational network grew steadily during the year. Daily shakhas rose from 83,129 at 51,740 locations in 2025 to nearly 90,000 at 56,000 locations, an increase of 6,700 shakhas and 4,000 locations. Along with weekly milans and monthly mandalis, total shakha‑related activities crossed 1.9 lakh.
In Telangana, the RSS reported 3,492 shakhas at 2,112 locations. It added 375 new shakhas during the centenary year, focusing on rural mandals, smaller towns and areas where regular activity was thin till recently.
RSS Akhil Bharatiya Karyakarini member Dr Manmohan Vaidya said the Sangh aims to organise society through the daily shakha and encourage citizens to play an active role in national life. He noted that 60 per cent of those who expressed interest through the “Join RSS” initiative last month were aged between 20 and 30. Shakhas are now present in 60 per cent of the country’s mandals, he said.
The RSS says the centenary outreach promoted social harmony by encouraging people from different castes, classes, language groups and regions to live together like members of one family. Volunteers have also increased communication with weaker and marginalised sections, sharing at least one meal together every week.
After October 20, the RSS will focus on retaining contact with families and volunteers reached during the campaign. It plans to involve them in social service, local problem‑solving and Panch Parivartan activities. Functionaries indicated that the organisation will continue working towards one lakh shakhas and expand its presence to more villages.
The October 20 event will serve as both the formal close of the centenary year and the launchpad for the RSS’s next phase of expansion and community work.