Rs 92 lakh spent on mats for Yoga day: Government

NEW DELHI: The government spent more than Rs 92 lakh to purchase yoga mats for International Yoga Day (IYD) celebrations at Rajpath, Rajya Sabha was informed today.

"The Ministry of AYUSH procured 37,000 yoga mats on the occasion of celebrations of IYD on June 21 at Rajpath through the agency Ms Arch Concept Pvt Ltd hired for event management activity through open tender basis.

"The total amount spent on purchase of 37,000 yoga mats is Rs 92,50,000 plus taxes," AYUSH minister Shripad Naik said in a written reply. He was asked whether these 37,000 yoga mats were procured from China.

The Minister said that the procurement was made through the local event management agency following the procedure laid down in General Financial Rules 2005.

The Rajpath event made it to the Guinness Book of World Records for the largest yoga demonstration at a single venue with more than 35,000 people participating.

The government had a few days back in another reply said that it had spent over Rs 32 crore on organising the first IYD.