About Us

Our founder

Pujya Swami Dayananda Saraswati was a profound thinker, philosopher, spiritual teacher and one of the greatest masters of Vedanta. He was born on August 15, 1930, in Manjakkudi, a small village on the banks of River Kaveri in Tiruvarur district, Tamil Nadu.

As a world renowned spiritual teacher, Swami Dayananda Saraswati’s influence on the world stage has been enormous. Posthumously awarded the Padma Bhushan, he was the founder of AIM for Seva, Swami Dayananda Educational Trust, Arsha Vidya Research & Publication Trust and Arsha Vidya Gurukulams in India and USA.

Though deeply rooted in the richness of Indian tradition, Swami Dayananda Saraswati was contemporary in his thinking and approach to the issues of the day. His impeccable logic, brilliant analysis, erudition, precise use of language, and humour made him a renowned and sought after teacher of Advaita Vedanta. His discourses taught the most profound truths in simple language, leaving the audience spellbound.

Swami Dayananda Saraswati did not confine himself just to Vedanta. His benevolence and empathy extended to all civilisations, and all cultural forms that helped bring positive change in the lives of thousands of people. He strove to preserve, nurture and appreciate the diversity of human culture.

Our History

The Swami Dayananda Educational Trust (SDET), founded by Swami Dayananda Saraswati in 2003, is based in Manjakkudi in Tiruvarur District, Tamil Nadu. Nestled amidst lush paddy fields, Manjakkudi (the birthplace of our founder) is home to an integrated community development project instituted, developed and sustained by SDET. Over close to two decades now, SDET’s continued work through its projects have transformed this silent village into a vibrant centre of learning, nourishing young minds to explore, experiment and expand their horizon.

A major transformation is silently underway in this tiny hamlet in the Kaveri delta of southern Tamil Nadu. Since 2001, one initiative led to another — education and employment, Vedic school, farming and cows and community healthcare — reflecting a logical and symbiotic evolution of one project with and after another.

Today, Manjakkudi has evolved to become a knowledge hub with 4,000 students from 300 villages commuting daily to study in the three educational institutions located in this region.

Swami Dayananda College of Arts & Science

2001

Semmangudi Government-Aided Higher Secondary School

2004

Swami Dayananda Ayurveda Clinic

2005

Swami Dayananda Vidyalaya

2006

Swami Dayananda Vedapatashala

2006

Swami Dayananda Farm

2012

Swami Dayananda Goshala

2012

Dayavanam and Herb Garden

2013

Rural Ambulance Service

2014

Swami Dayananda Community Hall

2014

Smt. Godavari Khilanani Wellness Centre

2017

Jnana Pravaha - Swami Dayananda Study Centre

2018

Vision

To empower and create opportunities for rural communities to realise their full potential and become contributing members of society.

Mission

Creating an environment of learning in rural India through educational institutions that are centres of excellence.

Impact Created on the Ground

Manjakkudi represents a socio-economic eco-system that has embraced modernity yet maintained its essential rural ethos. The integrated community development programme by SDET aims to create societal change and progress from the grassroots without compromising the character of rural traditions, culture and lifestyle.

By working tirelessly towards empowering through education and employment, facilitating and providing sustainable rural development right from the grassroots level, SDET has impacted across more than 300 villages, and improved the lives of 250,000 people through its integrated community initiatives.

In promoting higher and quality education, the Trust has seen a pass rate of 97% in school and 98% in college, with students finding placement in reputed companies like Sundaram Finance Limited, Tata Consultancy Services, ICICI, City Union Bank, Lucas-TVS and CAMS through campus placement.

By inspiring beneficiaries to lead their community development programmes or act as catalysts to inspire social and economic revolution, SDET has created a generation of change-makers and contributors.

By reviving more than 289 varieties of Artisanal Heritage Rice through organic farming as part of its sustainable developmental endeavours, SDET has created awareness about green farming.

By providing employment to more than 300 families in Manjakkudi, SDET has created an economic microcosm.

The deep-rooted impact of our projects can be seen not just in the lives we touch, but also by the fact that we fulfill the key developmental parameters laid out by national and international development programmes: The Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY), instituted by the Government of India, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) charted by the United Nations.

The Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY) is a rural development programme broadly focusing on the development in the villages, which includes social development, cultural development and spread motivation among the people on social mobilization of the village community. The programme was launched by the Prime Minister of India, Sri. Narendra Modi, on October 11, 2014. Our projects are in line with the following parameters laid by the programme:

The Sustainable Development Goals are the blueprint set out by the United Nations to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. The SDGs address the global challenges we face, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice, with the aim of achieving the goals by 2030. Of the given set of 17 goals, SDET fulfils the aims of eight SDGs. The eight SDGs are: