International Day of Yoga: Muted celebrations due to Covid-19

Indian Girl Tanvi Sharma Practices Yoga Ahead of The International Yoga Day in Ajmer, In the Indian State of Rajasthan on 19 June 2021.
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People in India and around the world are marking the seventh International Day of Yoga. But celebrations have been scaled down this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is known to be a yoga enthusiast, also avoided a mass session and instead chose to address the nation virtually to mark the occasion.

Yoga practitioners exercise ahead of the International Yoga day at a park in Amritsar on June 19, 2021.
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Over the years, Mr Modi has promoted yoga, often calling it India's gift to the world. On Monday, he said yoga had become a ray of hope for millions living in the middle of the pandemic. "No country was prepared when Covid-19 emerged. In these tough times, we all saw that yoga became a huge source of self-confidence," he said.

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President Ram Nath Kovind also held a private yoga session at the presidential palace and several members of Mr Modi's cabinet held similar events across the country.

Mr Kovind said yoga was a "unique gift of India to humanity". Defence forces have also posted photos and videos of troops marking the day.

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Officials and ministers also urged people to take to yoga but advised them to avoid big gatherings as the the country is just coming out from a deadly a second wave.

Thousands died as hospitals struggled to cope with the influx of patients. The country is now slowly opening up as the number of cases has been consistently dropping in the last two weeks.

People performing yoga during a preparation of the 7th International Yoga Day at Tau Devi Lal Stadium Sector-38 near Rajiv Chowk, on June 19, 2021 in Gurugram, India.
Hindustan Times

Covid lockdowns meant that millions had to stay indoors. Experts say yoga can be helpful in such scenarios to overcome anxiety.

Anant yogalaya students perform yoga ahead the International Yoga Day in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India, on June 20, 2021
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The ancient tradition which was once the preserve of gurus has now become a worldwide phenomenon. Every year, practitioners all over the world bring out their mats on 21 June to show their love for yoga.

The UN declared in 2015 that 21 June every year will be marked as the Yoga Day. It said this year's theme focuses on "yoga for well-being". It said yoga can promote the holistic health of every individual amid the pandemic. It added that yoga played a significant role in the psycho-social care and rehabilitation of Covid-19 patients in quarantine and isolation.

Youth performing yoga on the eve of International Yoga Day, on June 20, 2021 in Amritsar, India. The theme of this year's Yoga Day is Yoga for wellness, which focuses on practising Yoga for both physical and mental well being.
Hindustan Times

People in several parts of the world are also marking the day. In the picture below, people can be seen practising yoga at a park in front of the Three Gorges Dam in China's Hubei province.

People practice yoga at a park in front of the Three Gorges Dam to welcome the International Day of Yoga, in Zigui County on June 20, 2021 in Yichang, Hubei Province of China.
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And here, people at New York's Time Square can be seen practising yoga.

People participate yoga at the Times Square as part of the ''International Day of Yoga'' event on the Summer Solstice in New York City, United States on June 20, 2021.
Anadolu Agency

People also marked the day in Pakistan's Lahore city.

People practice Yoga ahead of the International Yoga day in Lahore on June 20, 2021. 
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