Secretary (I&B) and Secretary (AYUSH) review preparations for outreach activities of International Day of Yoga 2024

Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (I&B) and the Ministry of AYUSH have initiated the preparations for organisation of International Day of Yoga (IDY) 2024. Shri Sanjay Jaju, Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (I&B) and Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH reviewed media and outreach activities for the upcoming IDY 2024 celebrated annually on 21st June, here today.

The Media Units of the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting are preparing to organise a variety of program activities to create awareness about the Common Yoga Protocol (CYP) along with awareness about the benefits of practising Yoga. Key activities are planned by various media units including Press Information Bureau, Prasar Bharati, New Media Wing, and others.

Public Service Broadcaster, Prasar Bharati would be broadcasting and telecasting different programs through Doordarshan (DD)/All India Radio (AIR) Network. Doordarshan would be broadcasting programmes/interviews with Yoga experts along with telecasting special LIVE morning shows.

Akashvani will broadcast programmes to promote Yoga as a way of life and for the overall wellness of people, in collaboration with ‘Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga’, an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of AYUSH. The Ministry of AYUSH has prepared a ‘Yoga Geet’ which would be shared across all media platforms.

The Ministry of I&B would continue with the initiative of encouraging private media organisations with Antarashtriya Yoga Diwas Media Samman (AYDMS). Ministry of  Information & Broadcasting had instituted the Antarashtriya Yoga Diwas Media Samman (AYDMS) on 09.06.2023 for recognizing the contribution of Media Houses/Companies in Print, TV and Radio in spreading the message of Yoga. The award categories include ‘Best Media Coverage in Yoga in Newspaper’, ‘Best Media Coverage in Yoga in Electronic Media (TV)’ and ‘Best Media Coverage in Yoga in Electronic Media (Radio)’. The Awards for this year, along with the awards of last year’s, would be presented at a later date after the completion of this year’s  celebrations.

The New Media Wing (NMW) would be conducting activities like ‘Yoga with Family’ contest through Ministry of I&B’s social media accounts as a challenge for families to do Yoga together and upload reels using the Yoga Geet.  A ‘Yoga Quiz – Guess the Aasan’ will also be organised. The IDY 2024 Podcast will be released.

Apart from this, various Media Units and Organizations of Ministry of I&B will organise sessions/workshops on yoga as a run-up to IDY. Yoga camps, seminars, etc., will also be conducted this year to promote yoga and wellness among the employees.

The scale and the level of  celebration of the IDY has been increasing every year since the recognition of June 21 as the “International Yoga Day”. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has been at the fore-front of the efforts of the Government to take Yoga to the world. On the occasion of the 9th International Day of Yoga 2023, Prime Minister had led the festivities at the UN headquarters in 2023 attended by delegates from 135 nations. A Guinness World Record was set with 135 nations participating in the Yoga celebration. The event was also celebrated on a larger scale with new initiatives. The main national event organised in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh saw over 15,000 enthusiastic participants demonstrating the Common Yoga Protocol (CYP) in the presence of Vice President, Shri Jagdeep Dhankar.

In addition, the ‘Ocean Ring of Yoga’ saw naval personnel from 19 ships across 34 countries participating in yoga demonstrations with support of the Ministries of Defence, External Affairs, and Ports Shipping, and Waterways. Yoga demonstrations were held from the Arctic to Antarctica, including India’s research bases, Himadri and Bharati. The Indian armed forces created the ‘Yoga Bharatmala’ and coastal demonstrations were termed ‘Yoga Sagarmala.’

At the grassroots levels, the ‘Har Aangan Yoga’ initiative connected with rural communities, organising yoga sessions at Panchayats, Anganwadi centres, and schools, covering around 200,000 locations. The estimated participation in the IDY 2023  was 23.4 crore.