Parmarth Niketan is an ashram located in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, India. Parmarth Niketan is situated in the lap of the lush Himalayas, along the banks of the Ganges. The ashram was founded in 1942 by Pujya Swami Shukdevanandji Maharaj (1901–1965). Since 1986, Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji Maharaj is the President and Spiritual Head of Parmarth Niketan. For the last 25 years, Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati lives and teaches at the Parmarth Niketan Ashram. Parmarth Niketan is open to all visitors, with no discrimination on the basis of race, nationality, religion, caste or creed.