MUMBAI: On the occasion of International Yoga Day which was observed on Friday, the residents of Juhu decided to dedicate a corner of one of their neighbourhood parks-the Kaifi Azmi Udyan in Juhu specifically for Yoga. The space which was inaugurated by local residents and actor Anupam Kher is spread across an area of approximately 2,000 sq feet.
Locals said that earlier people would perform yoga in a scattered manner at different corners of the park and therefore a dedicated space as such was needed. Besides they also said that with many people becoming health conscious in today’s time it was ideal to start a corner as such as they felt that it would give a boost to community living.
Activist and chairman of the Gulmohar area societies welfare group Ashoke Pandit said, “We had this idea in our mind for a while. We thought what better day than June 21 which is observed as International Yoga Day to inaugurate this corner. It took us about a fortnight to get the space ready with the required tiling works and designing which done by architect PK Das. We have kept the space very simple with just a shed and some very simple stones.”
Pandit added that as a citizen group they never let their energy levels dip and ensure that there are some new activities that they take up within the park. “Ever since the inception of the park over a decade ago they have always tried to give the park a different look either by placing new plantations or lighting after every few months,” he said.
On Friday apart from locals there were several students as well who attended the inauguration and also performed yoga within the corner. The local MLA from the area Ameet Satam said that there was a demand from locals for such a corner. “With the increasing awareness on Yoga people had been requesting a corner as such. The credit for this goes to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Besides I had also noticed that previously people visiting the park would perform yoga in a scattered manner within the garden.Keeping this in mind we decided to dedicate one available corner for Yoga only,” said Satam.
