Veerendra Heggade

Veerendra Heggade is an Indian Philanthropist born on November 25, 1948. He is the eldest son of Dharmadhikari Ratnaverma Heggade and Rathnamma Heggade. He heads the famed Dharmasthala temple in the Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka. His father was elected to the Mysuru State Legislative Assembly in 1957. He transformed Dharmasthala into a modern pilgrimage center. Veerendra Heggade preferred social service to politics. Dharmasthala provides meals to over 30,000 devotees every day. He is the first head of a temple from Karnataka to be nominated to the Rajya Sabha. Veerendra is the 21st Pergade dynasty member to hold the Dharmadhikari position in Dharmasthala.

He publishes a monthly journal named Manjuvani. Moreover, he has been conducting a free mass marriage yearly in Dharmasthala since 1972. He has also introduced a rural development project in the coastal areas of Karnataka. He founded SDMIMB College in Mysore, which became one of India’s leading business schools. He introduced a Post Graduate program at Ujire’s Shri Dharmasthala Manjunatheshwara College. He has been honored with many reputed awards, including the Rajarshi Title from the President of India in 1993, Sri Bhagavan Mahaveera Peace Award, Karnataka Title of the Year in 2009, Padma Bhushan Award in 2000, Padma Vibhushan in 2015 and many other titles.