Mysore youth walking pan India reaches Silchar to spread yoga, environmental awareness

Silchar, Dec 16: Students and youngsters must know the benefits of yoga and they must be inspired to take up yoga as a part of their everyday chores. With this aim, Krishna Nayak, a resident of Udubur village in Mysore, Karnataka, has been on a padyatra, walking across various states, since October last year.

On Thursday, Nayak reached Silchar, walking through the hilly terrain of Jowai, Meghalaya and was among the students of Don Bosco HS School disseminating messages on the rightful use and practice of yoga. A day later, The Assam Tribune caught up with the youth in Silchar town as he came out after meeting the Cachar District Commissioner, Rohan Kumar Jha.

Talking to this correspondent, Nayak, a yoga teacher by profession, carrying the Indian flag on his back, said that he has walked over 9,000 km since October 16, 2022, and Assam is among the 28 states that he has covered, spreading messages among the public on the importance of yoga and why India is proudly showing the way to healing the woes with yoga to the world. He informed that besides yoga, he is spreading messages on environmental conservation as well by planting saplings and sprinkling seeds wherever he travels.

"I was a cricketer and while recovering from a back injury during my student days, I came in touch with a saint who suggested me to practice yoga to heal the woes. Since then, life has taken a beautiful turn and I became a passionate practitioner of yoga forms and regular exercises helped me to come out of the problems and I am at peace now. It is this passion that drives me to disseminate the message among the people, especially the students. Students and youngsters are the future leaders of this great country and they must be told that yoga can be done by anyone, irrespective of their fitness levels," Nayak asserted.

The yoga teacher from Mysore informed that he has been in North East for the last two months and he has been amassing experiences of the region from his interactions with the people. “This is my third padyatra after Karnataka, followed by a walk from Mysore to Kashi. I wish to cover the whole of the North East and complete my mission in another year's time," he added.

Asked how he keeps himself fit for such a sturdy task, Nayak revealed that while he walks from one state to another, he eats raw vegetables and keeps groundnuts with him for stamina and energy.

Interestingly, Krishna Nayak's pursuits have immensely impressed the members of the Rotary Club of Greater Silchar and they have reached out to him to help and navigate across the Northeast.

Lalit Kumar Verma, a frontline member of the Rotary Club of Greater Silchar, informed that they are touched by the way Nayak has been influencing people's lives with his mission to walk across the country. “My father Vinod Kumar Verma met Krishna for the first time in Jowai and since then we came into contact. His passion and dedicated service to the nation is commendable and we, on behalf of our organisation will extend all possible help in his pursuit across North East and also if required in other parts of the country as well," Lalit Verma maintained.