Govt committed to saving youth from drugs: Saini

Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini said that the state government has taken a pledge to make Haryana a drug-free state.

“If promising youth fall prey to drugs, then not only is their body harmed, but the treasure of the nation is also harmed. Drug addiction is a bad habit which hinders the development of any nation,” the CM said while addressing the state-level yoga marathon organised under the aegis of Haryana Sports Department, AYUSH Department, Haryana Yoga Commission and district administration at Brahma Sarovar on Sunday.

The marathon was organised as part of the state-level International Yoga Day festival to be held in Kurukshetra on June 21.

While addressing the participants, the CM said, “Taking further the Fit India movement and connecting every citizen of Haryana with yoga, a complete plan was prepared. The objective is to keep youngsters away from drugs and keep them physically fit. The theme of Yoga Day is ‘One Earth, One Health’ and we have added the slogan of ‘Yoga Yukt Nasha Mukt Haryana’ to motivate people to adopt yoga in their lives. Yoga is an ancient gift given by our sages and we need to preserve this gift.”

Saini said, “The yoga campaign is not limited to health and fitness only, but is becoming a green revolution in Haryana. So far, 67,508 saplings have been planted as part of the campaign, which shows our commitment towards the environment.”

He said that a ‘Yoga Jagran Yatra’ will cover 5,000 villages of the state by June 19 and raise awareness about yoga. Institutions like Patanjali Yoga Peeth, Bharatiya Yoga Sansthan, Brahmakumaris and Art of Living are organising yoga camps at 2,500 places in the state on June 21. Under the Green Yoga Campaign, 10 lakh medicinal plants will be distributed and planted by June 21.

After addressing the participants, the CM flagged off the marathon. Director General of Sports Sanjeev Verma said more than 10,000 participants had registered for this 5-km state-level yoga marathon.

Former Minister of State Subhash Sudha handed over the cheques of prize money to the winners.

The top-20 winners (10 each in male and female categories) of the yoga marathon were honoured with cash prizes. In each category, the first prize was Rs 51,000, the second prize was Rs 31,000 and the third prize was Rs 21,000. Additionally, seven runners in both categories received Rs 10,000 consolation prizes.

In the male category, Gaurav of Sonepat won the first prize. Rohit of Sonepat and Mohit of Mahendragarh secured the second and third spots, respecetively.

In the female category, Monika of Sonepat won the first prize. Sonika of Bhiwani and Anjali of Kurukshetra secured the second and third spots, respectively.