Schools in Uttar Pradesh will soon have yoga in its curriculum, as well as a separate board to promote Sanskrit education in the state, Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Secondary Education Dinesh Sharma has said.
The minister made the announcement while addressing a seminar on ‘Yoga as a medicine’ organised by Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali Yog Peeth in the state.
Talking about the need for a Sanskrit Board, Sharma said, “The state has a Sanskrit Parishad but it is more or less defunct and is being run by only a handful of officials. Sanskrit scholars, intellectuals, professors and writers will be appointed to the Board. This Board will be the first of its kind in the country.”
The Sanskrit education board would affiliate, conduct examinations and make grants-in-aid available to schools following its curriculum, he added.
Yoga will be introduced as a different subject in schools and will not be taught under physical education, the minister said. “The subject will be divided into two parts – yoga and physical education.”
Yoga guru Baba Ramdev had earlier requested the state government to establish a Sanskrit University in Uttar Pradesh and to also improve the condition of Sanskrit schools. The BJP had also promised setting up of a Sanskrit university in its poll manifesto for the state.
Baba Ramdev was also at the event and underlined the importance of yoga. Talking at the event, Ramdev said, “We will do Yoga together and take steps to remove societal illness, diseases, bad habits, intoxication and other negativities. This will make lives peaceful and prosperous.”
“Yoga has been an inalienable part of our culture. No king or emperor has built India or shaped its destiny. In fact, India has been built by saints, yogis and fakirs. It is a matter of pride for us that the Prime Minister is a yogi, and the Chief Minister of the most populous state is also a yogi,” he added.