Take a 5-minute Yoga break, govt tells employees
Are you losing focus at work? Itching to stretch your limbs in office? Is your back hurting? And would you rather meditate than go for that cup of coffee?
Stress not, now there’s a law – actually an app – to manage your health problems, in just five minutes. It’s time for Yogasana. Yes, the five-minute loo break is passe, and the central government is encouraging its employees to go for a short Y-Break while at work, and get fit by doing yoga.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is a keen practitioner of asanas, has on numerous occasions urged the public to take up yoga, and now the Ministry of Ayush has taken up his call and developed an app with a five-minute yoga protocol. And they are expecting it “to spread like wildfire”.
On Friday, the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), issued an order to promote Yogasana in ministries. “To spread awareness about access and usage of Y-Break (Yoga Break) protocol and application among workforce for all sectors (public/private), all Ministries and Departments of Government of India are requested to promote the usage of Y-Break protocol among the employees and accordingly issue necessary directions or guidelines for all employees including employees of attached and subordinate offices to download the Android-based application named Y-Break…” it said.
To destress via the app, government employees will do “asanas, pranayama and dhyana” for five minutes while in office.
Never take health lightly. Everyone must remain fit & healthy especially those who are working. Yoga Break App at workplace launched by the @moayush is an amazing app and very convenient as well as useful for health & well being.#YogaAtWork #Fitness #YogaForAll pic.twitter.com/27xG0sSM9S
— Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) September 2, 2021
The Ayush Ministry launched the app a few days ago at a function which saw six ministers in attendance and demonstrating the asanas. Yogasana was tested last year in six cities – Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Kolkata – and apparently got an encouraging response.
Also read: Yoga now a competitive sport, championships soon: Sports ministry
DoPT minister Jitendra Singh, among the attendees, told the media that he had had urged Law minister Kiren Rijiju to “enact a law on yoga for five minutes at the workplace so that people can take advantage of it”.
Rijiju said they expect the app to “spread like wildfire”, while Ayush minister Sarbananda Sonowal explained that the yoga-at-workplace idea was especially meant for stressed corporate professionals so that they could incorporate some exercise in their busy day and thereby increase productivity as well.
“We know that corporate professionals often experience stress due to their occupation. Other professions are also not exempt from such problems. Keeping in view the working population, this Y-Break has been developed, which will give employees some solace at the workplace,” the minister reportedly said.
