Mansukh Mandaviya to lead International Yoga Day celebrations from 'statue of unity' in Gujarat

On the occasion of the eighth International Day of Yoga (IDY), Union Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya will lead IDY celebrations from the statue of unity in Gujarat's Kevadia on June 21, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare informed on Saturday.

On the occasion of the eighth International Day of Yoga (IDY), Union Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya will lead IDY celebrations from the statue of unity in Gujarat's Kevadia on June 21, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare informed on Saturday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also lead the Yoga Day celebration from Mysuru Palace grounds in Karnataka.

According to the release, PM Modi's address will be live-streamed on DD National and other DD Channels from 6:40 am to 7:00 am. A 'Digital Yoga Exhibition' at Mysuru will be organised to showcase highlights and achievements of all previous editions of the International Day of Yoga.

The exhibition will also include strengths of Yoga, best practices, research highlights, Common Yoga protocols etc, the Ministry said in a press statement. In the spirit of 'Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav' as the country celebrates its 75th year of independence, 75 iconic sites have been selected for observation in the eighth editions of IDY. The statue of unity at Kevadia in Gujarat is one of them.

The International Day of Yoga is celebrated on June 21 every year worldwide. This year, the 8th edition of IDY will be organised in India and across the globe on the theme of 'Yoga for Humanity' which was announced by PM Modi in his 'Mann Ki Baat' address and will focus on 'Brand India at Global Stage' while showcasing its iconic places.

The IDY observation is based on a harmonious mass yoga demonstration of a custom-made 45-minute protocol namely, Common Yoga Protocol (CYP). This year, the major attraction of the IDY observation will be the 'Guardian Ring', whereby the yoga celebrations happening across the world will be relayed throughout Yoga Day.

"The Guardian Ring" underlines the "One Sun, One earth" concept and showcases the unifying power of Yoga. The activity will string together the feed from different Missions abroad which will be live telecast on DD India. Urging all to join in and reap the benefits of Yoga, Prime Minister has shared a series of tweets.

In one of his tweets, he said that, in the past few years, Yoga has become quite popular globally. People from all walks of life and professions have incorporated it into their daily routine as Yoga has helped them develop a healthy lifestyle, he noted. Promoting the healthy habit of practising Yoga regularly, Mandaviya, in a tweet, stated that in order to avoid illness and receive happiness, it is very important to focus on wellness for which everyone should make yoga a part of their lives.

The first International Day of Yoga was celebrated on June 21, 2015. The key purpose behind the United Nations recognising the 21st of June as the IDY was to underline the potential of Yoga in public health globally. The IDY resolution of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in December 2014 came at the initiative of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and was passed by unanimous consent. Since 2015, the IDY has evolved into a mass movement for health, around the world. (ANI)

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