Amit Shah: PM Modi helped take yoga to world

Rohtak (Har): Crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for taking yoga to the world, Union home minister Amit Shah said on Friday that the ancient Indian practice has become ambassador of the country’s culture around the globe.

Mr Shah praised Mr Modi’s efforts towards promoting Yoga and said it was due to the PM’s initiatives that yoga has got international recognition and June 21 is now celebrated as the International Day of Yoga.

Addressing state-level yoga day celebrations organised by the Haryana government, Mr Shah said on December 11, 2014, the United Nations General Assembly declared June 21 as the ‘International Day of Yoga’, months after Prime Minister Modi proposed the idea.

The International Day of Yoga is celebrated annually on June 21 to raise global awareness about the benefits of the ancient Indian practice. “Modi ji has helped take yoga to the world. It has also helped promote our culture. Yoga today has beco-me ambassador of our culture to the world and has helped attract millions across the world to our culture... it has played a key role in promoting our culture,” Mr Shah said.

Without naming anyone, Mr Shah said there are some who point fingers by saying what will be gained by doing yoga for a day. “I want to humbly tell those pointing fingers that today, on this occasion, in 200 nations crores of people who are doing yoga will help inspire millions of children, who will take a pledge to connect yoga with their life,” he said.

He said in the past when India was under foreign rule including by the Britishers, yoga was restricted to saints and seers. Mr Shah said that later many people made their contributions to promote yoga, but international recognition came only in 2014.

“Several people held different programmes and contributed to revive yo-ga. But it gained recognition at the world level wh-en country witnessed a ch-ange in 2014 when Mr Modi was elected as the PM,” Mr Shah said.