International Yoga Day: Speaker praises PM Modi for his yoga feat

When

Speaker Hriday Narain Dixit

praised Prime Minister

Narendra Modi’s initiative

to get a worldwide recognition to yoga, the latter who was sitting on the same table during the dinner at the CM house on Tuesday, acknowledged with a smile. Dixit said that in the past, it was generally people’s initiatives to popularise celebrations like Holi and Diwali, but such attempts by governments and states failed. “It was for the first time when an initiative and an effort of a prime minister and a government has turned into an international campaign,” he said. Modi, who was on the table number one with governor Ram Naik and the chief minister, also said that yoga was being celebrated all over the world and the United Nations was also promoting it.

NO GLITZ | A few years back, when Mulayam Singh Yadav was was chief minister a similar high profile dinner was hosted by him and his aide Amar Singh to honour former US President Bill Clinton, who had come to Lucknow. Bollywood starlets and a glamour cultural programme was organised at that time. However, at Yogi's dinner there was no such colour and glamour, rather it was more ‘nationalist’ in fervour as freedom fighters had been invited on the occasion and Modi personally went to greet them.

HIGH-PROFILE GUESTS | No maulanas or the Muslim clerics were seen at the high-profile attended by nearly 175 VIPs, including chief secretary Rahul Bhatnagar, DGP Sulkhan Singh, all additional chief secretaries, principal secretaries, retired officers including GB Patnaik, Vikram Singh and Prakash Singh. Principal secretary, information, Awanish Awasthi was attending to the guests on behalf of the CM.

GUJ KADHI FOR PM | The chief minister office had engaged a five start hotel of the city for arranging the dinner where Gujarati dishes like kadhi was served to the the PM, who relished it. Special chefs from Gujarat had been called for preparing special dishes for the high-profile dinner.