Yoga is India's gift to world for health, peace says PM Narendra Modi in Argentina

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday described yoga as India's gift to the world for health, wellness, and peace, adding that the exercise improves the health of both the mind and body of an individual.

Addressing a 'Yoga for Peace' event here, Prime Minister Modi congratulated 'The Art of Living' for organising the programme, and said yoga is joining India and Argentina with a spiritual bond.

The event featured a mass yoga demonstration by 600 people. The programme also featured a song by the famous Argentine singer, Patricia Sosa, a chanting of "Aum Namah Shivaya", and a short Indian classical dance performance.

The Prime Minister spoke of Argentina's interest in Indian philosophy, art, music, and dance, and the immense popularity of Argentine soccer stars such as Diego Maradona in India.

Furthermore, he congratulated the Argentinian hockey team for winning their first match against Spain during the ongoing Hockey World Cup tournament being held in Bhubaneswar.

Prime Minister Modi underlined that issues such as global economy, sustainable development, climate change, and economic fugitives, which are of interest to the entire global community will come up for discussion at the G20 Summit.

Earlier on Thursday, the Prime Minister arrived in Argentina for a three-day visit to attend the summit and has a string of bilateral and multilateral meetings to attend to during the short trip.

Prime Minister Modi met and held talks with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman on ways to further extend bilateral cooperation in various issues. He also met the Indian community upon his arrival in Buenos Aires.

On November 30, the Prime Minister is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Prime Minister of Netherlands Mark Rutte.

He is slated to depart for India on December 2.

-ANI