About Us

Over the last two hundred years our people have migrated to many countries where we have prospered in all areas and made great contributions to those countries. In Canada, we have the privilege to create the environment and institutions where we can maintain our way of life and be close to our religious and cultural roots.

We have been very successful in creating places of worship where we have been able to practice our religion and provide an opportunity for the new generation of Hindus to develop an appreciation for our way of life. Our community is growing at a rapid rate and continues to make major inroads in the areas of Business, Science, Finance and Technology. Equally we face the challenges of such growth and are faced with the realization that we cannot continue to exist as pockets of people doing well in our own temples and with our small individual groups. We have reached a stage where we must go beyond the religious needs and have equal emphasis on the general needs of our community.

It is the responsibility of every Hindu to become involved in their communities welfare, with the conviction that in the eyes of the rest of Canada we are all one people (Hindus). We are referred to by the media and other public service entities as Hindus not as Gujarati, Punjabi, West Indian etc. We all bare the stigma of any individual as a collective group. As such we cannot continue to act in isolation to address issues that can only be resolved as a community working together. We have the opportunity to transform our community from one that exists merely with the knowledge that we are Hindus, to a one that lives Hinduism and a community that will be seen by all as progressive and a major contributor to the Canadian Society.

People of all cultures migrating to Canada are striving to create an inner structure within their communities to serve as the focal point for all of their needs. The Hindu community in its efforts has established many places of worship that is the focal point for all its religious and cultural needs. However, there has been limited effort or achievement in addressing the social and other needs of the community. There has been start up efforts and discussions on this issue and many half hearted activity still lingers by different groups, all with no sound footing. Realizing that only a small percentage of our community are regular attendees at Mandirs, it is obvious that there is a great need for a structured approach to cater to the general needs of The Hindu Community. Many have expressed concerns quietly indicating that some organized group must take ownership of this challenge and motivate the community towards establishing and maintaining agencies and institutions that must project dedicated efforts and focused approach that will ensure that the Hindu community have some place of reference other that our place of worship ( Mandir).

These concerns have gone unanswered for many years while our community continues to grow and the lack of basic social services are becoming more visible in all aspect of life. Social services that the Federal, Provincial and Municipal Governments encourages, all communities to take an active part.

Faced with the helpless situation of not being in a position to respond to the needs, a few dedicated individuals decided to take action. As a result a corporation was established in 2003, registered under the name of Canada Hindu Heritage Centre (CHHC).

The Charter of the CHHC was simply to address all the social, cultural, educational, financial, health and recreational needs of the Hindu community. The mandate was to establish the necessary infrastructure and programs that will facilitate the establishment of agencies and institutions that will foster the interest of the Hindu community in Canada.