Brace yourself! Over 1,000 prisoners in Tihar prisons to turn yoga gurus

Brace yourself! Over 1,000 prisoners in Tihar prisons to turn yoga gurus

FPJ Web DeskUpdated: Friday, June 21, 2019, 03:47 PM IST
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With an aim to help prisoners start a new life, more than 1,000 inmates of prisoners in Delhi are going to be trained as yoga teachers under the project ‘Sanjeevan’. The project was inaugurated on January 23 after a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed in this regard between the Prison Department and the Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga (MDNIY). Under the project, instructors from the institute will train inmates in 16 jails in the city, including Tihar, with an aim to provide them life skills so that they can work as yoga teachers and make a living, Director General (Prisons) Ajay Kashyap said to PTI. “We have aimed to train at least 1,000 inmates as yoga teachers under the project,” adds Kashyap.

Under the project, there are two courses – a foundation course (four weeks) and an instructors’ course (four months). Those passing the course will be felicitated with certificated on International Yoga Day. As of now 100 inmates, 75 men, and 25 women, will appear for the instructors’ course, said an official to PTI. Talking to PTI about the schedule of the course, Kashyap says, “A total of 32 yoga teachers, from the institute, have been assigned to train the inmates in 16 jails, two for every jail. The classes being conducted from Monday to Friday every week.” Besides yoga, the authorities also emphasising on meditation as well. Kashyap said the jail authority wants the trained inmates to join various organisations as yoga teachers after their release.

Jails in Delhi celebrated the International Day of Yoga on Monday and inmates participated in mass yoga exercises in jail number 1 of Tihar. According to a statement released by the Delhi Prison, the chief guest Ishwar Basavaraddi, director of MDNIY, conducted the exercise.

(Inputs from PTI)

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