| Formation | 7 January 1972 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Eknath Ranade |
| Legal status | Active |
| Headquarters | Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, India |
Region served | India |
President | A. Balakrishnan |
| Website | vrmvk |
Vivekananda Kendra is a spiritually-oriented service mission founded in 1972, based near the Vivekananda Rock Memorial in Kanyakumari (Tamil Nadu, India).
It claims to focus on "man making and nation building" through various activities, including education, women's empowerment, rural development, promoting Indian culture, as well as youth empowerment, and free yoga classes to promote healthy mind and body.
Founded by Eknath Ranade as a "living memorial" to Swami Vivekananda's vision, following the construction of the Vivekananda Rock Memorial in Kanyakumari.
Vivekananda Kendra received the Gandhi Peace Prize for 2015 for its contribution to rural development, education, and development of natural resources. [1]
Runs Vivekananda Kendra Vidyalaya (VKV) is a network of 84 schools across India, including Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Tamil Nadu, and the Andaman Islands, claiming to focus on holistic education inspired by Swami Vivekananda's teachings.