7th International Day of Yoga

Seventh International Day of Yoga (21st June 2021) is being celebrated by the Ministry of Culture at 75 cultural heritage locations across the country.

Key Points

Proposed by India:

    • The idea of International Day of Yoga (IDY) was proposed by India during the opening of the 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), held in 2014.
    • The UN proclaimed 21st June as IDY by passing a resolution in December, 2014.
    • The first Yoga Day celebrations in 2015 at Rajpath in New Delhi created two Guinness World
      • It was the world’s largest yoga session with 35,985 people.
      • 84 nationalities participated in it.

About Yoga:

  • Yoga is an ancient physical, mental and spiritual practice that originated in India.
  • The word ‘yoga’ is derived from Sanskrit and means to join or to unite, symbolizing the union of body and consciousness.
  • Today it is practiced in various forms around the world and continues to grow in popularity.
  • Yoga plays an important role in the psycho-social care and rehabilitation of Covid-19 patients in quarantine and isolation.
  • The World Health Organisation (WHO) has also asked its member states to practice Yoga and has included it in its Global Action Plan for physical activity 2018-30.
IDY – 2021:
  • This year’s theme is “Yoga for wellness”.
  • The extensive drive (Yoga at 75 cultural heritage) has been titled “Yoga, An Indian Heritage”, and is part of India’s “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav” campaign.
  • Some places in the list of 75 sites are the Agra Fort in Uttar Pradesh, Shanti Stupa in Ladakh, Ellora Caves in Maharashtra and Nalanda in Bihar, Rajiv Lochan Temple, Raipur, Sabarmati Ashram in Gujarat, and Akhnoor Fort in Jammu.
  • The Prime Minister announced the M-Yoga App which will help in achieving ‘One World One Health’.
  • The app is a work of collaboration between the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (Ministry of AYUSH), Government of
  • In the M-Yoga App, there will be yoga training videos and audio sessions in different languages for people across the world which will play a ‘great role’ in expanding yoga across the globe.
  • The app is currently available in English, Hindi and French. It will be available in other UN languages in the upcoming months.
Other Initiatives by India:
  • The Ministry of AYUSH in its ‘Common Yoga Protocol’ has listed Yama, Niyama, Asana, etc. among popular yoga ‘sadhanas’.
  • The Beauty & Wellness Sector Skill Council (B&WSSC) has vocational education courses in Yoga for CBSE schools.
  • B&WSSC is established as a non-profit organization under the aegis of National Skill Development Corporation, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.
  • Thousands of candidates have been trained as yoga instructors and trainers through various skilling initiatives like the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY).
  • PMKVY is the flagship scheme of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.
  • Yoga is also a part of the Fit India Movement.
  • Fit India Movement is a nation-wide campaign that aims at encouraging people to include physical activities and sports in their everyday lives.
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