New Delhi, June 21 (IANS) From Uttarakhand to Kerala, political and spiritual leaders along with the general public took part in the 12th International Yoga Day celebration, highlighting that apart from ensuring health and wellbeing, yoga and Ayurveda have generated employment opportunities in the country.

BJP MP Dinesh Sharma said: “Yoga is not just about International Yoga Day, but a resolve to promote and protect the health of people globally.”

“I believe India’s traditions of Ayurveda and yoga have emerged as a valuable contribution for guiding and transforming the world. It has also generated employment as several people have become yoga teachers and many are practising Ayurvedic medicine,” he added.

Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria requested people to attend yoga classes, saying: “There are many places where yoga is being practised, but the number of people participating is not as expected. I am ready to arrange as many yoga teachers as needed, but it won’t yield the desired results as long as maximum people don’t take part.”

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami also performed yoga at an event in Champawat.

Parmarth Niketan Ashram’s spiritual head, Swami Chidanand Saraswati, said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken yoga “from caves, mountains and the Himalayas to every household and across the world”.

“He understood that yoga teaches us how to live and also how to celebrate life,” he told IANS.

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak appealed to people to make yoga a part of their daily routine so that the “state remains healthy and moves on the path of development”.

BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, who performed yoga in UP’s Rampur, said: “The result of the continuous and effective efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is that today the world is celebrating this magnificent and vibrant heritage of India as International Yoga Day.”

A sand artist had created a sculpture in Prayagraj. She said: “Through this artwork, we have shown how the tradition of yoga has continued from generation to generation.”

In Bhopal, Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said: “Yoga unites us all, embodying the spirit of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’. I express my gratitude to PM Modi for popularising yoga globally.”

According to Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, ‘yogasana’ ensures a “sound mind and sound body”.

“It is one of India’s biggest contributions,” he told reporters in Karnataka.

Kerala Mission Director of the National Health Mission, Anu S. Nair, spoke about Yoga Day celebrations in the state.

“National Ayush Mission Kerala has conducted the International Yoga Day throughout the state. We have nearly 700 yoga centers where the Mission organised mass yoga demonstrations. We also have Ayushman Arogya Mandirs with active yoga clubs,” he said.

–IANS

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