In his drive to whip India's bureaucrats to shape, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has now ordered the civil servants to join him for early morning yoga. It has been reported that senior civil officers received letters asking them to join a mass yoga session, led by Modi this month to mark a new international day celebrating the ancient practise. The Prime Minister is expected to lead approximately 35,000 people at the outdoor session at 7 am, June 21, in the capital, New Delhi.
“It’ll be a 35-minute yoga demonstration programme led by the prime minister himself,” a senior government official said. The ministry in charge of yoga had sent training DVDs and booklets to government officials to help them perfect the yoga poses or asanas, to be performed on the day. “If they practise every day for even 15-20 minutes, they will be ready for the big day,” he said. “It will be for their own benefit, it will be a good experience.”
The UN last year proclaimed June 21 to be International Day of Yoga, following a proposal from Modi himself. The Prime Minister, a vegetarian who practises yoga daily and credits his strict regime for his ability to work long hours on little sleep, said he was “elated” by the decision.
He has cracked down on India’s disreputably inefficient bureaucracy ever since he storm into power a year ago and continues to keep officials on their toes.
