International Yoga Day 2022: Mega Yoga Utsav held in Hyderabad, 25 days countdown begins

Over 10,000 people from different walks of life joined the Yoga Utsav in Hyderabad today to mark the 25 days countdown to the International Day of Yoga.

The event was organised by the Ministry of Ayush with active support from the Government of Telangana. The event saw participation by the Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, Union Minister for Ayush Sarbananda Sonowal and Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy. Minister of State in the Ayush Ministry Munjpara Mahendrabhai Kalubhai and Telangana Finance Minister Thanneeru Harish Rao were also present in the event. The theme of the Utsav was "Make Yoga a part of Your Life."

Speaking on the occasion, Sonowal said, "We must celebrate our rich heritage by making Yoga a part of our lives. It enriches our health and mind. The idea behind this Yoga Utsav is to encourage people to take up Yoga, a wonderful gift of our thousands of years of civilization, so that they can enrich their quality of life."

He said that the success of today's event will give further momentum towards the 8th International Day of Yoga on June 21 in Mysuru where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead the elaborate celebration of Yoga by enthusiasts and practitioners across the world.

Sonowal further announced another major attraction, known as "Guardian Ring", whereby the yoga celebrations happening across the world will be relayed throughout the Yoga day.

Every year, the missions abroad organise Yoga activities on International Day of Yoga. The Guardian Ring activity will string together the feed from different Missions. The streaming will be initiated from Japan at 6 am local time and, then, move westward.

As and when the Sun rises, streaming will be done from other countries. "The Guardian Ring" underlines "One Sun, One Earth" concept and showcases the unification power of Yoga. As part of our run-up events, as many as 25 crores or more would join in these Yog Utsavs at 75 iconic places across India as part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, added the Minister.

The Yoga Utsav were also organised at five Archaeological sites including Rakhigari (Haryana), Hastinapur (Uttar Pradesh), Sivasagar (Assam), Dholavira (Gujarat) and Adichanallur (Tamil Nadu) into "iconic" sites across India.

The curtain raiser event to mark the 100 days countdown to International Day of Yoga was celebrated on March 13 while a 75-day countdown event was organized at the Red Fort in Delhi.

This was followed by a 50-day countdown event at Shiva Doul temple complex in Sivasagar, Assam on May 2, 2022. The celebration of International Day of Yoga on June 21 will be at Mysuru in Karnataka where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead the Mass Yoga Demonstration.

The Ministry is also planning to organise a Digital Yoga Exhibition at Mysuru 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 Protocol, etc.

The eighth edition of International Day of Yoga is being promoted through multiple programmes by the Ministry to take the message of Yoga across the world to a wider audience.

The International Day of Yoga is celebrated across the world on June 21 every year. This year, the Yoga Utsav is being celebrated across 75 heritage sites of historical importance as part of 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' in order to give a fillip to the brand India. All the ministries of the government, defence forces and other uniformed service organisations are working together to make this movement towards wellness through Yoga a grand success.

In order to bring everyone within the ambit of this movement, the Ministry of Ayush is planning to engage with all the Gram Panchayats across the length and breadth of the country. This will take the movement beyond the urban areas and into the heart of India.

The Ministry is committed to encouraging more and more participation from the rural areas.

(ANI)