A mass yoga session for about 3,000 people is scheduled at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi on June 21 as the flagship Sports Ministry programme for the 12th International Day of Yoga. Sports and Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and actor Akshay Kumar are due to join the gathering, which will be organised around the theme "Yoga for Healthy Ageing".
The Delhi programme forms part of a larger national exercise involving the Sports Authority of India. Coordinated sessions are planned at SAI regional centres, National Centres of Excellence, SAI training centres and Khelo India institutions. The ministry expects these venues to draw more than 15,000 participants across the country.
National sports federations, state sports departments and sports universities are also expected to hold programmes. That structure gives the observance a wider sporting footprint than a single ceremonial event, bringing athletes, coaches, students and sports administrators into the same public-health initiative.
The stadium session will include instruction by yoga trainer Anshuka Parwani. Organisers expect athletes, students, senior citizens, fitness enthusiasts, yoga practitioners and families to attend, making the event accessible to people with different levels of experience rather than limiting it to competitive sport or professional training.
Mandaviya described yoga as a practice linking physical, mental and spiritual well-being. The ministry has presented the event as part of its wider effort to encourage preventive health and regular physical activity, alongside programmes such as Fit India. The emphasis on healthy ageing is intended to connect the annual observance with habits that can continue beyond the day itself.
International Day of Yoga has been observed on June 21 since the United Nations adopted the proposal in 2014. Organisers said the 2026 edition is expected to reach participants in more than 180 countries, underlining how the India-led initiative has developed into a global annual event.
For the domestic sports network, the practical test will be participation beyond the main stadium. The simultaneous sessions at training centres, universities and federation-linked venues are designed to turn a nationally televised gathering into distributed local activity, with established sports institutions providing space, instructors and organisational support.
