VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh government’s flagship Yogandhra-2026 festival began on Sunday with a surge of registrations and widespread participation across the State.
Conceived as a build-up to the International Yoga Day on June 21, the fortnight-long programme aims to involve one crore citizens in yoga practice and awareness activities.
On the opening day alone, more than 25,000 names were registered through the Yogandhra portal, according to Health and Family Welfare Commissioner G Veerapandian.
The inaugural state-level event was held at Lepakshi temple in Sri Sathya Sai district, where Health Minister Satya Kumar Yadav described yoga as ‘a symbol of Indian culture and lifestyle’ and urged people to embrace it for physical and mental well-being.
The government has set a target of preparing 2.5 lakh participants under the guidance of yoga master trainers.
Over the weekend, 5,992 trainees completed their initial registration and training, while 50,752 individuals received instruction from senior trainers on Sunday alone. District-level programmes were held at: Lepakshi temple (1,952 participants), Vontimitta Kodandarama temple in Kadapa (625), Manginapudi beach in Krishna district (758), and SV Zoo Park in Tirupati (2,150).
Across 253 village and ward secretariats, yoga-themed contests began on Sunday, attracting 1,700 participants. These will continue for 13 days, highlighting different aspects of yoga practice.
All government medical colleges have been directed to conduct yoga programmes until June 20, involving students and submitting reports by June 22. With registrations rising and training drives in progress, Yogandhra-2026 is emerging as one of the country’s largest yoga campaigns, aimed at integrating yoga into daily life across Andhra Pradesh.