Nearly one lakh people celebrate Yoga Day from home

Nagpur: Observing International Yoga Day amid the Covid-19 pandemic seemed like a Herculean task but Janardhan Swami Yogabhyasi Mandal (JSYM) made it possible to unite people for performing yogasana together by livestreaming yoga sequences on their website, Facebook, YouTube and UCN. Around one lakh people performed yoga on Sunday morning from their homes. JSYM organized the programme with support of Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) and South Central Zone Cultural Centre (SCZCC).
Union minister Nitin Gadkari, mayor Sandip Joshi, Govindgiri Maharaj, Jitendra Maharaj, Shriram Joshi and SCZCC director Deepak Khirwadkar joined the telecast to highlight the importance of celebrating the day. They acknowledged JSYM’s efforts to make this a remarkable day for people who actively practice yoga and urged others to adopt this healthy lifestyle for their mental and physical well-being.
In his opening remarks, JSYM secretary Ram Khandwe said, “In 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed the idea of celebrating International Yoga Day on June 21 during his speech at the United Nations General Assembly, in order to promote the importance of yoga globally. As we are facing the challenge of Covid-19, JSYM workers suggested that we should perform yoga from our homes while being connected digitally.”
Rahul Kanetkar showed various postures, breathing techniques and meditation during the live telecast while Dinesh Bapat’s videos were shown to teach a few asanas.
Speaking on the occasion, Gadkari said, “Janardhan Swami devoted his entire life to disseminate the importance of yoga and it was his mission to promote it among maximum people so that all we lead a healthy life. We are working for JSYM inspired by Swami and we were disheartened about not being able to mark this day with the usual programme organized at Yeshwant Stadium that witnesses participation of around 40,000 people. But, using technology this programme has reached lakhs of people.”
Gadkari added that the dream of instituting a university dedicated towards the study of yoga will become a reality soon. He spoke about the lucrative opportunities lined up ahead of yoga instructors globally.
In his speech, Joshi said, “Due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, we have not been able to celebrate this day with the community. Thus, the significance of this day has increased manifold. All of us should observe this day from our homes with the vision of making our city, and eventually our country, hale and hearty.”
Varsha Kaushik was the anchor of the programme.
(Reporting by Manshika Vaikkath)