 Summary of this article
- Founded in 1952 at Jashpur in Madhya Pradesh by senior RSS activist Balasaheb Deshpande, the Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram has grown over 74 years into a nationwide network working among tribal communities.
- The children at both VKAs in Nandurbar study at nearby public schools and live in the ashram under strict RSS-style discipline.
- Since 2016, in tribal-majority states like Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Jharkhand, Dabhade said the Sangh-affiliated VKA has sought to de-list tribals who converted from Hinduism
Gorakh Shinde, in his pink school shirt, sat under a tree on the premises of the Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram (VKA) in Kanadi-Chikhali. In Class V, he had just returned to his ashram hostel to play for a short while. His Zilla Parishad school is located right next door. Shinde, a Bhil Adivasi from Piprani village in Shahada taluka of Maharashtra’s Nandurbar district, mentioned how he was introduced to the VKA at Kanadi-Chikhali. |
