Make yoga part of daily routine: PM Modi to people

New Delhi, Jun 18 (PTI) Ahead of the International Day of Yoga, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday urged people to adopt yoga in their lives and make it a part of their daily routine.

Modi said this time he will get the opportunity to participate in the International Yoga Day programme to be held at the United Nations headquarters in New York on June 21 during his US visit.

Even on social media, there is tremendous enthusiasm about Yoga Day, he noted.

In his ‘Mann Ki Baat’ radio broadcast, Modi noted, “21st June is also round the corner. This time too, people in every nook and corner of the world are eagerly waiting for the International Day of Yoga. 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’. It expresses the spirit of yoga, which unites and takes everyone along.”

Like every time, this time too programmes related to yoga will be organised in every corner of the country, he said.

“I urge all of you to adopt yoga in your life, make it a part of your daily routine. If you are still not connected with yoga, then the 21st of June is a great opportunity for this resolve. There is no need for many frills in yoga anyway. See, when you join yoga, what a big change will come in your life,” he said.

In his broadcast, Modi also highlighted that the historical Rath Yatra will be held day after tomorrow.

“Rath Yatra bears a unique identity throughout the world. Lord Jagannath’s Rath Yatra is taken out with great fanfare in different states of the country. The Rath Yatra in Puri, Odisha is a wonder in itself. When I was in Gujarat, I used to get the opportunity to attend the great Rath Yatra in Ahmedabad,” he said.

The way people from all over the country, every society, every class turn up in these Rath Yatras is exemplary in itself, he said.

Along with inner faith, it is also a reflection of the spirit of ‘Ek Bharat- Shreshtha Bharat’, he added.

“My best wishes to all of you on this auspicious occasion. I pray that Lord Jagannath blesses all the people of the country with good health, happiness and prosperity,” the prime minister said.

While discussing the festivals related to Indian tradition and culture, Modi said he must also mention the interesting events held in the Raj Bhavans of the country.

“Now Raj Bhavans in the country are being identified with social and development work. Today, our Raj Bhavans are becoming the flag bearers of the TB-free India campaign and the campaign related to organic farming. In the past, be it Gujarat, Goa, Telangana, Maharashtra, Sikkim, the enthusiasm with which different Raj Bhavans celebrated their foundation days is an example in itself,” he said.

This is a wonderful initiative which empowers the spirit of ‘Ek Bharat-Shreshtha Bharat’, Modi added.

During the broadcast, Modi also said that many people say that as prime minister he did a certain good work or some other great work.

“Many listeners of ‘Mann Ki Baat’ shower praise in their letters. Some say a particular task was performed; others refer to a job well done; some express that a certain work was done in a much better manner. But when I see the efforts of the common man of India, the sheer hard work, the will power, I myself am moved,” the prime minister said.

Be it the loftiest goal, be it the toughest challenge, the collective might of the people of India, the collective power, provides a solution to every challenge, he asserted.

Noting that cyclone Biparjoy caused a lot of destruction in Kutch, Modi said the courage and preparedness with which the people of Kutch fought such a dangerous cyclone is equally unprecedented too.

In just a couple of days, the people of Kutch are also going to celebrate their new year Ashadhi Beej, he noted.

Modi said it is also a coincidence that Ashadhi Beej is considered a symbol of the onset of rains in Kutch.

“I have been going to Kutch for many years… I have also had the good fortune to serve the people there… and that’s how I know very well the zest and fortitude of the people of Kutch. Kutch was once considered to be a place which would never be able to recover after the devastating earthquake two decades ago. Today, the same district is one of the fastest growing districts of the country,” he said.

“I am sure the people of Kutch will rapidly emerge from the devastation caused by cyclone Biparjoy,” he stressed.

No one has any control over natural calamities, but the strength of disaster management that India has developed over the years, is becoming an example today, he said.

“There is a significant way to combat natural calamities viz. conservation of nature. These days during monsoon, our responsibility in this direction increases manifold. That is why today the country is making collective efforts through campaigns like ‘Catch the Rain’,” he said.

Pointing out that in the ‘Mann Ki Baat’ broadcast last month start-ups associated with water conservation were discussed, Modi said this time too he has come to know through letters about many people who are trying their very best to save every drop of water.

He also talked about one Tulsiram Yadav of Uttar Pradesh’s Banda district.

“You too know that there have always been hardships regarding water in Banda and Bundelkhand regions. To overcome this challenge, Tulsiram ji has built more than 40 ponds in the area, taking the people of the village along with him. Tulsiram ji has made the basis of his campaign farm water in farms, village water in villages,” he said.

Today, the result of his hard work is that the ground water level in his village is improving, Modi said.

Similarly in Hapur district of Uttar Pradesh, people collectively have revived an extinct river, he said.