Kanchi Shankaracharya’s Punjab Outreach: New Trust, Temple, A Call To Reunite Sikhs And Sanatanis

Last Updated:July 02, 2026, 16:03 IST

As part of the Punjab outreach, the Kanchi Shankaracharya announced plans to establish a temple, a trust and a research centre in Punjab.

Punjab’s security is India’s security – with this stark message, the Kanchi Shankaracharya, Vijeyandra Saraswati, placed Punjab at the centre of a wider civilisational conversation, arguing that the state’s cultural and spiritual revival is inseparable from India’s national security.

As part of the Punjab outreach, the Kanchi Shankaracharya announced plans to establish a temple, a trust and a research centre in Punjab. The project, to be undertaken through the Kanchi Kamakoti Punjabi Dharmashala Dharmavidya Trust, aims to revive the state’s ancient spiritual traditions, promote research into its civilisational heritage and strengthen the historical relationship between ‘Sikhs and Sanatani’. He also urged the civil society, the industrialists and others to support temple construction in the state.

Addressing a gathering in Delhi, organised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, the seer said Punjab’s identity as the land of the Panch Nadis, the five rivers, and of Lord Panchanadiswara must be reclaimed and strengthened. Flanked by BJP veteran Murli Manohar Joshi and VHP’s international president, Alok Kumar, he said that the ‘ cultural infiltration’ and the gradual erosion of ancient traditions pose a long-term challenge that must be addressed through religious and cultural institutions rather than politics alone.

“The suffering inflicted upon Hindus during Partition should never be repeated. Our civilisational memory must remain alive so that such tragedies do not recur," he said.

To institutionalise this effort, the Shankaracharya announced the registration of the Kanchi Kamakoti Punjabi Dharmashala Dharmavidya Trust, which will work to strengthen cultural bonds between Sikhs and Sanatanis while promoting Punjab’s ancient spiritual traditions.

The seer also outlined an ambitious nationwide programme for the revival of temples, Vedic learning and dharmic institutions. He announced that there would be major upcoming religious events, while a large Sindhi community congregation planned in Kanchipuram this December.

Calling for temple resources to be used for the preservation of ‘Sanatana Dharma’, the Shankaracharya said temple wealth should support Vedic education, priests and religious outreach.

He also said that Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has committed Rs 18 crore for Vedic propagation, with nearly 700 Vedic scholars to be supported and Veda Pathis receiving a monthly honorarium of Rs 22,000. Around 1,500 Vedic scholars will also be formally honoured.

The Shankaracharya also proposed a nationwide temple revival model. Working with the ‘Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board’ , ancient temples in border regions, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir, would be revived.

In Andhra Pradesh, nearly 5,000 small temples are proposed to be built through matching grants, with local priests receiving financial assistance of Rs 10,000. He also referred to Kerala’s Devapuja scheme as an example of sustaining temple traditions.

Each state, he said, should develop its own institutional framework for religious outreach through its major pilgrimage centres, from Kashi to Kamakhya, ensuring that India’s spiritual heritage is preserved, revitalised and passed on to future generations.

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Madhuparna Das

Madhuparna Das, Associate Editor (policy) at CNN News 18, has been in journalism for nearly 14 years. She has extensively been covering politics, policy, crime and internal security issues. She has co...Read More

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