AP CM performs yoga with Baba Ramdev
AMARAVATI: 'Yoga for every home... complete health is the government's goal,' Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu declared on Saturday as Andhra Pradesh observed the 12th International Day of Yoga with mass participation across the state.
Speaking at the main event held at Indira Gandhi Municipal Stadium, the Chief Minister announced that permanent 'Yoga Mandirs' would be constructed in Swarnagram and Swarnaward offices in every village and urban ward to institutionalise daily practice and make wellness accessible at the grassroots.
Dressed in a T-shirt bearing the 'Yogandhra' logo, Naidu took part in the two-hour session alongside yoga guru Baba Ramdev. Beginning at 5 a.m., Baba Ramdev guided thousands of students, officials, employees, and citizens through pranayama and a series of asanas. The Chief Minister, who said he has been practicing yoga for 30 years, performed several complex postures with ease and completed the full protocol. Minister Lokesh also participated actively through the session, which drew large crowds of youth and women to the stadium well before sunrise.
Addressing the gathering after the practice, Naidu described the experience of performing yoga with Baba Ramdev in a serene atmosphere as 'unforgettable.' He thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for securing global recognition for yoga and said the Prime Minister's efforts had ensured that International Yoga Day is now observed in 190 countries. 'India is Vishwaguru and can guide the world. The Prime Minister is showcasing India's strength and placing the country at the forefront,' he said. He credited Baba Ramdev for bringing yoga closer to the people and said the guru's work had been 'amazing' in popularizing the practice.
Outlining the state's roadmap, the Chief Minister said Andhra Pradesh had already created 1.33 lakh yoga centres and was targeting participation of more than 1 crore people in regular practice. He recalled that Yogandhra-2025 held in Visakhapatnam in the presence of the Prime Minister had set world and Guinness records, and announced that Tirupati would host the International Yoga Day celebrations in 2027. To ensure sustained impact, the government will appoint district and mandal-level officers to monitor yoga activities and constitute an expert committee to frame standard yoga protocols. A dedicated 'Yogandhra' portal will also be launched for tracking programmes, training, and participation across the state.
Linking wellness to public health, Naidu said the Sanjeevani project would be rolled out statewide from Aug 15 to bring medical experts and preventive healthcare, including yoga, closer to communities. He urged citizens to move away from junk and fast food, adopt chemical-free natural farming, and consume healthy food to keep illness at bay.
The Chief Minister set an ambitious target to increase green cover in the state to 50 percent. 'Do one hour of yoga, meditation, and pranayama daily. Then there will be no need to go to hospitals. Technology combined with spirituality is unstoppable. If today's generation can adapt technology, they must also adapt yoga and spirituality,' he said.
On the occasion, the Chief Minister administered an oath to citizens to act with responsibility for societal welfare. He emphasized that physical and mental fitness came only through yoga and that 'Adhyatmika Andhra Pradesh' could be achieved through sustained spiritual and yogic practice. Officials presented two certificates from the World Book of Records to the Chief Minister recognizing participation of 1.07 crore citizens and 2.5 lakh trainers in yoga programmes across Andhra Pradesh.
Union Ministers K. Rammohan Naidu and B. Srinivasa Varma, Yoga and Naturopathy Advisor to the government Manteena Satyanarayana Raju, and Ministers Sathya Kumar Yadav, K. Achchennaidu, Kandula Durgesh, and Savita attended the event along with senior officials and public representatives.
The stadium was filled to capacity as participants performed asanas in unison, marking what the government described as a step toward making Andhra Pradesh a model for preventive healthcare and community wellness through yoga.
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