With the celebration of 'Yog Utsav' at Red Fort organised by the Ministry of AYUSH on Thursday, the countdown began for the International Yoga Day which is celebrated every year on June 21 since 2015.
Nearly 2,500 people participated in the Red Fort event today.
Addressing the occasion, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla extended greetings to the people and said that Yoga is the ancestral way of living, adding that practising Yoga will keep up physical and mental health.
"We pray for the wellbeing of the entire world. Yoga is our ancestral way of living and one should practice yoga in order to have a healthy body and mind, today we are celebrating World Health Day and as we are observing Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav this year so after 75 days from today, we will celebrate International Yoga Day on June 21. I hope that if we adopt our ancient lifestyle then we along with our minds will also be healthy," Birla said.
Ayurveda expert Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH said, "Today is special because we are celebrating World Health Day. After 75 days from today, we will celebrate International Yoga Day on June 21. We are also celebrating Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. We are celebrating this as part of it."
"PM Modi says that Yoga is insurance with zero premium. One should practice Yoga," he added.
Union Minister G Kishan Reddy, highlighting the usefulness of Yoga, said that the entire world is accepting that Yoga is a tradition of India.
"Yoga is very useful for every individual and organisation. It benefits every country and humanity. Therefore, practising Yoga is very important. The entire world is accepting today that Yoga is the tradition of India," he said.
The Yoga Utsav has been organized prior to the International Yoga Day in view of the Union Government's initiative of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav.
( With inputs from ANI )
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