Prime Minister Narendra Modi commenced the second day of his state visit to the US by attending the 9th International Day of Yoga celebrations at the United Nations headquarters. Addressing the event, PM modi said: "Yoga comes from India and it is a very old tradition. Yoga is free from copyrights, patents and free from royalty payments. Yoga is adaptable to your age, gender and fitness level. Yoga is portable and is truly universal."It is to be known that the concept of International Yoga Day was introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his 2014 address to the United Nations General Assembly.
This year the theme of Yoga Day is 'Yoga For Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' i.e. Yoga for the welfare of all in the form of 'One World-One Family.' PM Modi is on a three-day US visit during which he will attend a special dinner hosted by Joe Biden and First Lady, hold key discussions with Biden on various issues conerning to the bilateral cooperation between India and US. The Prime Minister will also meet business heads and attend a diaspora event. In the meanwhile about today's Yoga event, it was nine years ago, India successfully convinced the United Nations to designate June 21 as International Yoga Day. Since then, Modi has harnessed yoga as a cultural soft power to stretch his nation’s diplomatic reach and flex his country’s rising place in the world