"Yoga is recognised all over the world": Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava
Chandigarh, July 22
Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava on Wednesday said yoga can play a significant role in preventing emerging non-communicable and lifestyle diseases, as delegates from 21 countries participated in a yoga session on the sidelines of the 16th BRICS Health Ministers' Meeting in Chandigarh.
Addressing reporters, Srivastava said the event was organised in line with the BRICS health agenda, which focuses on promoting healthy lifestyles as well as traditional, complementary and integrative medicine.
"As you know, in our BRICS Health Ministers Meeting, 21 countries are participating. So, their representatives have participated in today's session. And this participation is also important because in our BRICS agenda, there is a track on healthy lifestyles and also a track on traditional, complementary, and integrative medicine. So, moving forward with these two agendas, we have organized this yoga session," she said.
The Union Health Secretary highlighted that yoga has gained worldwide recognition following India's efforts to establish the International Day of Yoga through the United Nations (UN).
"And you already know that due to India's efforts, the UN has declared International Yoga Day. And now yoga is recognized all over the world. The fact that everyone participated today also shows that everyone has a great inclination towards yoga. This can definitely play a major role in preventing our emerging non-communicable diseases and lifestyle diseases," Srivastava added.
Earlier a press conference was held was held in Chandigarh on Tuesday, where Punya, and Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of Ayush, briefed the media on the preparations, agenda and expected outcomes of the Sixteenth BRICS Health Ministers' Meeting.
Addressing the media, the Union Health Secretary highlighted that the meeting reflects India's commitment, under its BRICS Chairship 2026, to advancing collective action on key global health priorities through the guiding theme of "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability."
Srivastava emphasised that discussions during the Ministerial Meeting will focus on strengthening cooperation in areas such as health security, pandemic preparedness, digital health, innovation, access to affordable medicines, traditional, complementary and integrative medicine, tuberculosis, healthy lifestyles, mental wellness and resilient health systems, while furthering the shared objective of achieving Universal Health Coverage and improving health outcomes across BRICS countries.
This marks India's fourth BRICS Chairship, following its earlier tenures in 2012, 2016 and 2021. Guided by the Chairship theme, "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability," India has placed health cooperation among the key pillars of its BRICS agenda, reflecting its commitment to advancing a people-centric and inclusive global health architecture.
The meeting will bring together Health Ministers, senior government officials and technical experts from the eleven BRICS member countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Indonesia. Together, these countries represent nearly half of the world's population and around 40 per cent of the global GDP, underscoring BRICS' growing role in shaping global health cooperation.
— ANI
Reader Comments
I agree that yoga has potential, but let's not forget that lifestyle diseases need more than just stretching. We need proper diet, exercise, and medical check-ups too. But yes, it's a good soft power move for India at BRICS. 😊
As an expat living in India, I've taken up yoga and it's been life-changing for my back pain. The Western world is catching on, but nothing beats learning from the source. Great to see India leading this conversation globally!
After 75 years of independence, we're still patting ourselves on the back for yoga? Meanwhile, our healthcare system is crumbling and NCDs are rising. Let's focus on making yoga accessible to our own people first - many can't afford a yoga class. PR events won't solve real problems.
I love the idea of integrating traditional medicine with modern health systems. India's Ayurveda and yoga have so much to offer. This BRICS meeting sounds like a great platform for knowledge exchange. Hope it leads to real policy changes, not just photo ops!
We need to be careful about appropriation though. Western yoga studios often strip away the spiritual essence and just treat it as exercise. Glad to see our officials emphasizing the holistic benefits. But words are cheap - let's see concrete outcomes for public health!
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