UNGA takes up resolution to declare June 21 as ‘Day of Yoga’
12 Dec 2014 1:34 AM GMT
The UN General Assembly will take up an India-led resolution today to declare June 21 every year as ‘International Day of Yoga’, with an unprecedented 175 countries joining as co-sponsors, less than three months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed the idea.
The draft resolution would recognise that “yoga provides a holistic approach to health and well-being,” echoing Modi’s remarks to the annual General Assembly session in September.
Besides proclaiming June 21 as the international Yoga day, the resolution would recognise that wider dissemination of information about the benefits of practising yoga would be beneficial for the health of the world population and invite all Member and observer States, organizations of the UN system and other international and regional bodies to observe it in order to raise awareness of the benefits of practising yoga.
The resolution was prepared by India and informal consultations were convened in October by the Indian mission in the UN General Assembly where views on the topic were expressed by other delegations.
Garnering overwhelming support, 175 countries in the 193-member General Assembly have joined as co-sponsors as on December 9th, the highest number of co-sponsors ever for any UNGA resolution.
It is also for the first time that such an initiative has been proposed and implemented by any country in the UN General Assembly in less than 90 days.
The draft resolution would recognise that “yoga provides a holistic approach to health and well-being,” echoing Modi’s remarks to the annual General Assembly session in September.
Besides proclaiming June 21 as the international Yoga day, the resolution would recognise that wider dissemination of information about the benefits of practising yoga would be beneficial for the health of the world population and invite all Member and observer States, organizations of the UN system and other international and regional bodies to observe it in order to raise awareness of the benefits of practising yoga.
The resolution was prepared by India and informal consultations were convened in October by the Indian mission in the UN General Assembly where views on the topic were expressed by other delegations.
Garnering overwhelming support, 175 countries in the 193-member General Assembly have joined as co-sponsors as on December 9th, the highest number of co-sponsors ever for any UNGA resolution.
It is also for the first time that such an initiative has been proposed and implemented by any country in the UN General Assembly in less than 90 days.
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