New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be leading a yoga session at the United Nations’ Secretariat on June 21 to mark the International Yoga Day, UN Resident Coordinator in India Shombi Sharp said on Tuesday (June 13). Interacting with news agency PTI on the sidelines of a seminar held here to mark 75 years of the United Nations (UN) Peacekeeping, he also said since 2015, “the world has truly embraced International Yoga Day”.
Recognising its universal appeal, in December 2014, the United Nations proclaimed June 21 as the International Day of Yoga by a resolution. The day aims to raise awareness worldwide of the many benefits of practicing yoga.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be leading a yoga session at the United Nations, at the Secretariat, on June 21, Mr. harp said.
Also Read: Uttar Pradesh Government Set To Hold Yoga Week On Grand Scale From June 15 To 21
The Secretariat carries out the substantive and administrative work of the United Nations as directed by the General Assembly, the Security Council and the other organs.
Everyone understood and 175 member states signed it very quickly. It is one of those popular international days, and really embodies so many things. It is about mindfulness, mental health, he said.
He said yoga helped people in difficult times like the COVID-19 pandemic.
Yoga is about staying fit and staying comfy, and International Yoga Day has “struck a resonance with the international community. And, having PM Modi at the UN will be “special”, he added.
The draft resolution establishing the International Day of Yoga was proposed by India and endorsed by a record 175 member states, says the UN website.
The proposal was first introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address during the opening of the 69th session of the General Assembly, in which he said,
Yoga is an invaluable gift from our ancient tradition. Yoga embodies unity of mind and body, thought and action…A holistic approach [that] is valuable to our health and our well-being. Yoga is not just about exercise; it is a way to discover the sense of oneness with yourself, the world and the nature.
Earlier, Mr. Sharp read out a message from the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during the seminar.
After reading out the message, he thanked India for its contribution to UN Peacekeeping over the decades.
Bharat ka dil se bahut dhanyawad (many thanks to India from the bottom of the heart), Mr. Sharp said.
India is one of the largest contributors of troops in UN Peacekeeping. It has contributed approximately 2.75 lakh troops to peacekeeping missions so far, with around 5,900 troops currently deployed in 12 UN missions, according to the defence ministry statement.
Later, Mr. Sharp also interacted with media and also took a few questions.
In his address, during the seminar, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh pitched for expanding the United Nations Security Council with India as a permanent member, and said the time has come for making UN bodies “more democratic and representative of the current realities of our age”.
When asked for his response to these remarks, the UN diplomat said, “The UN, when it comes to the Secretary-General, the staff of the UN, recognise that all multi-level organisations need to adapt and change to be relevant, and certainly the UN is no exception”.
Everybody recognises that there “needs to be reform and change to be relevant to today’s world”, Sharp said, adding “it is up to the member states, however, to determine the pace and nature of these reforms and change”.
Anybody, even disinterested bystanders could not argue that India does not have an incredibly strong resume to be a member of the Security Council, he said.
Also Read: More Than 1.25 Crore Persons To Take Part In International Yoga Day Events In Gujarat
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – theLGBTQ population,indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the currentCOVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water,SanitationandHygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fightmalnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health,adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues likeair pollution,waste management,plastic ban,manual scavengingand sanitation workers andmenstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India wheretoiletsare used andopen defecation free (ODF)status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched byPrime Minister Narendra Modiin 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.
