Health, Medical Education and Family Welfare Minister Satya Kumar Yadav said the State government aims to make yoga an integral part of every person’s life and that its objective goes beyond organising a one-day event to mark International Yoga Day.

Addressing the media at the Secretariat in Velagapudi on Monday, alongside Health Secretary Saurabh Gaur, Health and Family Welfare Commissioner G. Veerapandian and Government Advisor on Yoga and Naturopathy Manthena Satyanarayana Raju, the Minister announced that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had approved the establishment of the A.P. Yoga Prachara Parishad. The proposal is currently under examination by the Finance Department.

Mr. Yadav said three regional offices would be set up under the Parishad to coordinate and oversee yoga-related activities throughout the year. While 1.5 lakh trainers participated in the celebrations last year, the number has now been increased to 2.5 lakh. A dedicated war room will also be established to monitor activities being undertaken under the Yogandhra programme.

Awareness programmes will be conducted from June 7 to 20, while the main International Yoga Day event will be held in Amaravati on June 21. A special yoga session involving 25,000 participants is planned on the bridge across the Krishna river in Amaravati.

Yoga demonstrations will be organised at two prominent tourist destinations in every district during the two-week campaign. In Guntur district, the selected venues are the Undavalli Caves and the Mangalagiri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple. In Nandyal district, programmes will be held near the Srisailam Temple and the Mahanandi Temple.

As part of Yogandhra, yoga competitions will be conducted in four phases. Village and ward-level contests will be held from June 7 to 9, mandal-level competitions from June 10 to 12, district-level events from June 14 to 16, and the State-level finals from June 18 to 20 in Vijayawada.

Winners at the district and State levels will receive prizes, and outstanding performers will be invited to a special event in Amaravati to be attended by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.

To promote yoga at the household level, Mr. Satyanarayana Raju has prepared free video content in four categories. The videos can be accessed by sending a “Hi” message on WhatsApp to 8142404888. Users will receive a QR code, which, when scanned, provides access to a Google Drive link from where the videos can be downloaded.