JAMMU, June 9: Five iconic spots in the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are among 76 places finalized by the Union Government where Prime Minister Narendra Modi and 75 Union Ministers including the Defence Minister, Home Minister and Finance Minister will lead International Yoga Day (IYD) celebrations on June 21 this year.
The selected places include Suchetgarh in RS Pura sector along International Border with Pakistan in Jammu, Pangong lake near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China in Ladakh, historic Dal lake in Srinagar and Martand Sun temple in Anantnag, official sources told the Excelsior.
This is for the first time that all 75 Central Ministers will be visiting one historically significant spot each across the country on the occasion of International Yoga Day.
The Prime Minister will lead Yoga Day celebrations at Mysore Palace in Mysuru in Karnataka while Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will be in Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) and Union Home Minister Amit Shah at Tryambakeswar temple at Nasik in Maharashtra.
Union Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) holding Independent Charge of Sciences and Technology, Earth Science, PG, Atomic Energy and Space Dr Jitendra Singh will lead Yoga Day celebrations along with security personnel and local people on the International Border of Suchetgarh in RS Pura sector of Jammu district.
Bordering Pakistan, Suchetgarh was an Octroi Post between undivided India and Pakistan and presently hosts Beat the Retreat by the Border Security Force (BSF) twice a week.
Union Minister for Law and Justice Kiren Rijiju has been deputed to Pangong lake, falling close to the LAC with China in the Union Territory of Ladakh, to lead International Yoga Day celebrations there on June 21.
Pangong lake besides being a beautiful attraction for tourists has shot into limelight following conflict between Indian and Chinese troops in the areas surrounding it for last nearly two years now. While Sino-Indian militaries have disengaged from some spots, they remained in eyeball-to-eyeball position at many other places.
Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Dr Bharti Pravin Pawar will lead International Yoga Day celebrations at Martand Sun Temple in Anantnag district of South Kashmir. It is a heritage site.
Along Dal lake in Srinagar, Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj Kapil Moreshwar Patil will join the Yoga Day function on June 21. A historic lake, Dal is thronged by thousands of tourists visiting Kashmir every day.
Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Kumar Mishra will head the gathering on Yoga Day function at Kargil in the Union Territory of Ladakh. Kargil and Leh are the only two districts in Ladakh.
Union Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt will be the chief guest of Yoga Day at Wagah border in Punjab. Wagah border is known for Beat the Retreat ceremony by the BSF and Rangers every day. Delhi-Lahore Attari Express and bus service also cross Wagah to enter the territory of India and Pakistan.
Union Minister for Sports and Home Affairs Nitish Pramanik will join Yoga Day function at Atal tunnel in Himachal Pradesh.
Union Minister of Road, Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari will lead International Yoga Day celebrations at Zero Milestone, Nagpur in Maharashtra while Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will head the function at Jantarmantar in New Delhi.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be present at Lotus Temple Bahapur in Delhi, Mahendra Nath at Jagannath Temple in Puri, Sanjeev Kumar Balyan in Kedarnath temple, Rao Inderjit at Kurukshetra, Smriti Irani at Residency Lucknow, Piyush Goyal at Marine Drive, Mumbai, Dharmendra Pradhan at Kangra Fort, Himachal Pradesh, Bhupendra Yadav at Ayodhya, Dr Virendra Kumar at Maa Narmada, Giriraj Singh at Har Ki Paudi, Jyotiraditya Scindia at Gwalior Fort, Ashwini Vaishnav at Konark Sun Temple, Pashupati Kumar at Hastinapur, Hardeep Singh Puri at Red Fort, Mansukh Mandaviya at Statue of Unity at Kevadia, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti at Cellular Jail, V Muraleedharan at Padmanabham Swamy temple and Som Prakash at Rock Garden Chandigarh among others.
