Ram temple to be symbol of India's self-respect and pride: RSS

The upcoming Ram temple in Ayodhya will be a symbol of India's self-respect and pride and its ground-breaking ceremony was a turning point in India's history, the RSS said on Thursday as it decided to launch a mega outreach programme to mobilise funds for the project.

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, through its affiliates, will connect with 10 crore families across five lakh villages seeking monetary contribution for the temple's construction, a top RSS leader said.

After the end of a three-day 'chintan shivir' (brainstorming camp) held at Uvarsad village here, the RSS also decided to focus on three areas: achieving 'samajik samrasta' (social equality) by overcoming difference caused by caste, language and birth in the Hindu society, promoting Hindu family values and protecting the environment.

Top RSS leaders like Mohan Bhagwat and Bhaiyyaji Joshi, BJP president J P Nadda and heads of around 34 organisations working under the Sangh Parivar umbrella took part in the three-day meeting which started on January 5.

The ground-breaking ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya was a turning point in the history of the country.

"The temple will be a symbol of self-respect and pride of the country, said RSS Sah Sarkaryawahak (Joint General Secretary) President) Krishna Gopal, briefing about the meet.

The ground-breaking ceremony of the Shri Ram Temple held on August 5 last year has led to enthusiasm in the country as well as world.

"Temple construction issues were discussed in detail in the meeting, he said.

The VHP has planned an outreach campaign and it was decided (in the meet) that members of all organisations of the RSS will reach out to five lakh villages and over 10 crore families to connect them with the construction of the Ram Temple by way of monetary contribution, he said.

It is the will of people to contribute, but we expect at least Rs 10 from a person and Rs 100 from a family and those who are rich can give donations as per their wish, he said.

The RSS leader said in the meeting it was decided to focus on three activities in the near future.

Our workers have been asked to spread the message of social equality ('samajik samrasta'). Everybody is one, everybody is the same.

"Our festivals are for everybody, our customs are for everyone, religious teachers are for everyone. We have to overcome differences of caste, language and birth, he said, indicating the RSS wants to bring unity in the Hindu society.

The second activity will be to promote family values inspired by Hindu culture.

It has come to our notice that families are breaking up. We want to inculcate family values that have been promoted by Hindu culture, Gopal said.

The third activity that the RSS plans to take up on large scale is environmental protection, he said.

The RSS believes that degrading environment can cause catastrophic problems in the future one of them being scarcity of water, he said.

In reply to a question about the ongoing agitation by farmers outside Delhi against the Centre's new agri-marketing laws, Gopal said, "farmers and the government should find out a solution through talks." The RSS meeting also discussed the situation that has arisen in the country due to the coronavirus pandemic and lauded the efforts of health professionals, frontline workers and people who have fought it bravely, he said.

Around 150 top leaders of the Sangh Parivar participated in the meeting and discussed works of 34 RSS- affiliated organisations, he said.