Uttar Pradesh: People perform Yoga at Namo Ghat ahead of International Yoga Day

ANI June 17, 2025 316 views

Residents of Varanasi started their day with yoga at Namo Ghat ahead of International Yoga Day. Rajasthan Assembly Speaker Vasudev Devnani praised PM Modi for global yoga promotion. Visakhapatnam is gearing up as the main venue for this year's celebrations. The UN adopted Yoga Day in 2014 following India's proposal.

"Yoga is very important for a healthy mind, body and soul...I thank PM Modi, Baba Ramdev for promoting Yoga." - Vasudev Devnani
Varanasi, June 17: People gathered in the early hours of Tuesday at Namo Ghat in Varanasi to perform yoga ahead of the 11th International Yoga Day on June 21. The peaceful session by the river saw many participants starting their day with stretches and breathing exercises.

Key Points

1

Varanasi residents perform yoga at Namo Ghat ahead of June 21

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Rajasthan Speaker urges daily yoga practice

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Visakhapatnam prepares as national venue

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UN adopted Yoga Day after India's proposal

Earlier on Monday, the district administration organised a yoga session at Chandra Shekhar Azad Park in Prayagraj. Participants performed various yoga poses.

Meanwhile, highlighting the health benefits of yoga, Rajasthan Assembly Speaker Vasudev Devnani urged people to incorporate yoga into their daily routine. He also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for taking yoga to the global stage.

Speaker Devnani made the remarks while speaking to reporters after participating in a yoga rehearsal session at the Rajasthan Assembly on Monday ahead of the 11th International Day of Yoga.

"Yoga is very important for a healthy mind, body and soul...I thank PM Modi, Baba Ramdev and many other organisations for promoting Yoga...We should make Yoga a part of our everyday life," he said.

Preparations are gaining momentum across the country for the 11th International Day of Yoga (IDY), scheduled for June 21st.

Visakhapatnam, selected as the national venue for this year's celebrations, witnessed a comprehensive field inspection and high-level review meeting by senior officials from the Ministry of Ayush and the Government of Andhra Pradesh.

The inspection at ground level, led by Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of Ayush, and K Vijayanand, Special Chief Secretary, Government of Andhra Pradesh, included senior officials such as Monalisa Dash, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Ayush, District Collector M N Harendhira Prasad, and heads of key departments including Health, Urban Planning, Ayush, and VMRDA.

Their joint visit to the main sites--RK Beach, Rishikonda Beach, Andhra University, and GITAM University--underscored the scale and seriousness with which the event is being planned. These venues will not only host the main yoga demonstration but will also serve as centres for cultural, educational, and wellness activities, resonating with the Prime Minister's vision of yoga as a people-centric movement.

In December 2014, the United Nations unanimously adopted a resolution proposed by India to celebrate the International Day of Yoga on June 21, which is the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.

Since 2015, the Prime Minister has led the International Day of Yoga (IDY) celebrations at various iconic locations, including Kartavya Path in Delhi, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Ranchi, Lucknow, Mysuru and even the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

Reader Comments

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Rahul K.
Seeing these pictures from Varanasi fills me with pride! Yoga is truly India's gift to the world. The ghats make such a perfect setting for morning yoga - peaceful and spiritual. More power to all participants! 🙏
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Priya M.
While I appreciate the yoga promotion, I hope the government also focuses on making yoga accessible in rural areas. Many villages still lack proper facilities. Yoga should reach every corner of Bharat, not just cities and tourist spots.
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Amit S.
Started doing yoga during lockdown and it changed my life! No more back pain and better sleep. Kudos to PM Modi for making Yoga Day a global phenomenon. Now if only our offices would give us 15 minutes for yoga breaks daily...
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Sunita R.
The beaches in Vizag will be perfect for yoga! The sea breeze and sunrise - what better way to start the day? Hope they maintain cleanliness after the event though. Last year some venues were left messy.
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Vikram J.
Yoga is great but why so much focus only on June 21? We need year-round awareness. Schools should make yoga compulsory like PT period. Our ancient practices can solve modern health problems if practiced regularly.
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Neha P.
Beautiful to see people of all ages coming together for yoga! My 65-year-old father and 8-year-old niece both do Surya Namaskar together every morning. That's the real spirit of yoga - uniting generations 🇮🇳

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