Vadnagar: Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel will lead the state-level observance of the 11th International Day of Yoga at Vadnagar in Mehsana district. The event, scheduled for June 21, will see mass yoga sessions held across 17 municipal corporations, over 18,200 gram panchayats, schools, colleges, 6,500 wellness centres, district police headquarters, jails, PHCs, ITIs, and 100 Amrit Sarovar sites, according to a state government release on Thursday.

Gujarat, which saw participation from 1.31 crore citizens in last year’s celebrations, now aims to set a new Guinness World Record in the ‘Bhujangasana’ pose at Sharmistha Lake in Vadnagar, the hometown of PM Narendra Modi. All preparations for the mega event have been completed, officials said.

The state-level event will begin at 6 am and will be attended by CM Bhupendra Patel, Health Minister Rushikesh Patel, and MoS for Home Harsh Sanghavi. PM Modi’s address from Visakhapatnam will be streamed live across Gujarat on the day. The Gujarat State Yoga Board has targeted the participation of 1.5 crore citizens this year.

In the lead-up to the celebrations, yoga and Surya Namaskar sessions were held at 11 locations in Vadnagar, including Sharmistha Lake, Hatkeshwar Mahadev Temple, Tana-Riri Garden, Kirti Toran, Prerna School, Vadnagar Railway Station, Vadnagar Museum, Prerna Street, the watchtower, Hathi Derasar, and B N Shah High School. DeshGujarat