Yoga fad catches on

New Delhi: Along with a healthy lifestyle now Yoga can offer you a healthy bank account as well. Getting inspired and motivated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘start-up India movement’ and after spread of awareness by ‘International Yoga Day’ people from diverse backgrounds, across the country and abroad are not only practicing Yoga on a larger scale but taking it up as a full-time career. Prime Minister Narendra Modi while addressing innovators in New Delhi on the launch of ‘Start-up India Initiative’said, “Successful start-ups are usually created by those who are driven by an idea, or an urge to solve a problem that people face.” Thanks to the great publicity, people are now looking Yoga as a commercially viable and lucrative start-up project. Talking to ABP News over increasing enrollments at Yoga centres, Smita Agarwal, Director of Yoga Life said that after increase in awareness about benefits of Yoga, people are more willing to learn it. “Soon after 21st June 2016 we started getting new inquires and requests for trial sessions. We also witnessed increase in our registration numbers. Within a week four new students have registered with us”, she said. According to Director of ‘The Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga’, established by the ministry of AYUSH, Government of India, Dr. Ishwar V Basavaraddi, “Due to increase in awareness after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s initiative of ‘International Yoga Day’ we have seen 3-5% increase in the enrollment numbers at our institute.” Dr. Ishwar V Basavaraddi, Director of Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga “Earlier, 225-250 students were registered in the diploma programme but now the number have gone up to 570”, Dr. Basavaraddi said. Explaining the expenditure incurred in starting a career in Yoga he added, “With a minimum diploma fees of  12,000 Rs pa people can earn up to 70,000 a month depending upon their capability but we don’t encourage marketing of Yoga. Having a good teacher and a good environment are the only expense for a Yoga start-up.” Spreading Yoga to other countries gained pace after PM announced 21st June as Yoga Day in 2015. Concern regarding health issues and diseases already prevailed but non-pharmacological ways were not in vogue. Tina Khiara, certified Yoga practitioner After practicing Yoga for six years in Dubai, certified practitioner and sound therapist, Tina Khiara, said,  “PM’s Yoga campaign had a huge impact on the people living in Dubai. It motivated them to start their own business.” “Yoga has a lot of importance in India but personalities like Baba Ramdev and PM Narendra Modi endorsing it gives it international recognition. Teaching Yoga is my passion”, she added. Apurva, a software engineer from Hyderabad, is presently undergoing a teacher training programme from ‘Isha Yoga Centre’ of Coimbatore as she is planning to have her own Yoga school next year. “I wanted to explore more about Yoga as it's a science and not about religion. It’s not only about curing diseases but something beyond physical health. Also, PM Modi’s Yoga day initiative gave me a push to take up Yoga as a full time career and it has helped people a lot”, she told ABP News Living in an adulterated and polluted environment where people are more afflicted with mental disorders than physical illness, Yoga serves as a ray of hope thereby saving souls from further intoxication.