World keen to know about Indian heritage, says PM

Asserting that the world was keen to know about Indian heritage, including yoga, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday asked IT professionals to undertake "online activity" giving more information on the ancient practice.

"The world is keen to know more about India and our traditions and culture, our values. We should distribute our knowledge across the world. But we can do this only when we are proud of our heritage," Modi said in his monthly "Mann Ki Baat" radio address.

He said there were many things which had been were bequeathed to Indians by their ancestors like yoga and family values.

"Why don't we make the world aware of our family values?" he said, adding that in a similar manner, it was "our responsibility to give the world the knowledge of yoga".

"I request all young people, especially IT professionals, to undertake some online yoga activity which would provide information about yoga and its related benefits," he said.

Speaking about the success of the first International Yoga Day on June 21, Modi appreciated the armed forces for joining the event and their efforts to make the day a success.

"On June 21, when I saw glimpses of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon doing yoga at the UN headquarters, I felt very happy," he said.

The prime minister said people suggested that he speak on monsoons, which has arrived in many parts of the country.

Pitching for rainwater harvesting, Modi said efforts should be made to conserve water. "This should be a mass movement."

He gave the example of Mahatma Gandhi's house in Porbandar in Gujarat, where there was a 200-year-old underground reservoir to store rainwater.

In the run-up to the Raksha Bandhan festival, he asked people to ensure that women get benefits of social security schemes launched by the government.

"In August, we have Raksha Bandhan, we can begin a mass movement to ensure that all women and sisters of our country get all security scheme benefits before Raksha Bandhan," the prime minister said.

"Whether it is a woman working as a maid in our house, or in our fields or whether it is our own sisters, we can ensure that they avail the social security schemes."

Rakshan Bandhan is an Indian festival which celebrates the brother-sister bond.

Modi gave the example of the 'selfie with daughter' contest undertaken by a village head in Haryana and asked others to take up similar initiatives which would help the government's 'Beti Bachao Beti Padhao' campaign.

He asked people to post on social media images with their daughters along with the hashtag "#selfiewithdaughter".

The prime minster also asked people to coin slogans in any language on this topic, the best out of which he would retweet.