Why Suvendu Adhikari wants 1000 more RSS schools in West Bengal – All you need to know about Vidya Bharati Mission

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari pledged to create at least 1,000 schools managed by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) organization, Vidya Bharati, within a year. The RSS is the ideological heart of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Adhikari stated that these schools will be opened in every district, municipality, and panchayat.

He made the announcement at a Vidya Bharati event marking the organization's 74th anniversary at Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture. Adhikari urged the group to take on the task of providing what he called "nationalistic learning" and invited them to meet with government officials to advance the initiative. Vidya Bharati operates over 12,000 schools and 10,000 Bal Sanskar Kendras across India, with 313 schools currently in West Bengal.

The schools follow Vidya Bharati's vision of developing a national education system that fosters a generation committed to Hindutva and patriotic values. Adhikari, who recently became the first BJP Chief Minister of West Bengal after his party won the 2026 assembly elections, also proposed merging the state's four education departments into one, with no separate administration for madrassa education.

He criticized the previous Trinamool Congress government for "polluting" educational institutions and urged Vidya Bharati to take responsibility for imparting "nationalistic learning." Adhikari emphasized the need for a unified approach to education, echoing Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee's slogan: "One Nation, One Constitution, One Flag, One Leader."

He also expressed concern over the allocation of resources for university education, criticizing the division of responsibilities between the higher education department and Aliah University, which is managed by the state's minority affairs department.