Space set for Yoga Camp widened to adjust crowd

Bishnu Prasad Aryal

Kathmandu, March 27

Some 5,000 people who thronged the Yog Vigyan Shivir-2010 to learn Yoga practices from Yoga Guru Swami Ram Dev were compelled to return home without practices due to the lack of stage set for the camp. The one third of additional space has been widened to adjust the interested people today.

According to the Main Organising Committee, about 40,000 tickets were sold to the people for learning Yoga practices in the camp. The place for 30,000 people was arranged. However, some 35,000 people were adjusted at the arranged stage.

Rajani Sharma from Kupondol in Lalitpur said that she was forced to go back home owing to the narrow space in the camp. “I could not get any space to sit for the camp as it was already occupied. Though I had taken ticket I arrived here a bit delay,” she said.

Prabhari Babita Karki, head of the Central Zone Yoga Committee, said, “Nearly 5,000 people were forced to return this morning because of the high interest of people to take part in the camp and lack of adequate space for all interested,” she said. “Therefore, we have widened the one third of the space today to adjust the comers from tomorrow,” she added.

Karki said that innumerable calls were received different parts of various districts to take part in the camp. “The number of participants will reach more than 40,000 tomorrow,” she said. There are five kinds of visitors—gold paying Rs 500, VIP paying Rs 1,100, VVIP paying Rs 2,100, invitees and free pass.

KATHMANDU: About 3,000 people received treatment and free-check up at the Yoga Science Camp on the first day today. About 5,000 people were queuing up to check up their health as per Ayurved principle. Forty vaidhyas from India were checking up health of people. The health camp will continue from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm and 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm everyday during the camp, according to the organiser. A special camp will be held for school children in the afternoon on march 29. -- BPA

Swami Ram Dev, who operates Patanjali Yog Peeth in Haridwar of India, is here to operate the camp from March 27 to April 1 at Tundikhel in Kathmandu. Keeping the overwhelming interest of Nepalese people in Yoga, Swami has pledged to produce 100,000 Yoga teachers in Nepal.

Addressing the Yoga Science Camp that began at 5:00 this morning, Swami Ram Dev said, “There are 25,000 Yoga teachers in Nepal. I am dedicated to produce 100,000 such teachers here to teach the Yoga in order to make people healthy and cultured,” he said. “Yoga makes people healthy and cultured that they would help develop the nation,” he added.

Swami Ram Dev is going to inaugurate three yogpeeths at Mandikhatar in Kathmandu, Dhulikhel of Kavre and Syangja in Nepal this time.  He has also planed to laid foundation of eight yoga practices centres including Mahendranagar, Dhangadhi and Chitwan, said Karki.

Swami Ram Dev and Ayurved Acharya Balkrishna visited Armed Police Force Headquarters at Hallchowk in Kathmandu today to talk about the importance of Yoga practices to the police personnel. Similarly, both of them were present at Pashupatinath Temple to light 21,000 lamps in a function.

President Dr Ram Baran Yadav inaugurated the camp and released Bichar-Kranti, a book written in Nepali language about the Yoga and spiritualism. Meanwhile, the political leaders including CPN-UML president Jhala Nath Khanal, UCPN Maoist leaders Amik Sherchan and Janardan Sharma ‘Prabhakar’, industrialist Upendra Mahato Minister for Industry Mahendra Raya Yadav, Minister for Local Development Purna Kumar Sherma Limbu and DIG Upendra Kant Aryal were practising Yoga at the camp this morning.