Babus told to master asanas for Yoga Day attempt at record

Pushing files during the day and practising yoga afterwards is expected to become the routine of government babus in the Capital in the run up to June 21, when a mass yoga demonstration is being organised to celebrate International Yoga Day.

Pushing files during the day and practising yoga afterwards is expected to become the routine of government babus in the Capital in the run up to June 21, when a mass yoga demonstration is being organised to celebrate International Yoga Day.

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For, the government does not want officials, who have been told to participate in the event, to “turn up without practice” as it might mar their chances of staking claim to the Guinness Book of World Record (GWR).

The ministry of Ayush (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) is attempting to set a world record for the June 21 event in the category of the “largest yoga class/demonstration at a single venue.”

A communication issued by cabinet secretary Ajit Seth to all secretaries states: “The Ayush ministry has applied for record of this historic occasion in the Guinness Book of World Records…. If some officials turn up without practice and their performance is not up to the mark, we will run risk of affecting the record claim.”

Seth has requested secretaries to ensure that officers in their respective ministries get “hands on training in the asanas to be demonstrated. To facilitate training, the Ayush ministry, appointed the nodal agency for organising the event, has sent instructional booklets and DVDs on yoga to all ministries. With just 17 days left for the event, the ministry is apprehensive. “It is not only about the numbers but also about the quality of demonstration,” a ministry official said.

Ayush has already paid £500 to apply for the record – which will be judged by a GWR India representative. HT failed to get a response from the sole GWR representative in India.

About 35,000 participants are expected to participate in the mass yoga demonstration at Rajpath for 35 minutes starting at 7 am on June 21. PM Narendra Modi has been invited to lead the event.