Kolkata will host the main national event for International Yoga Day 2026 on June 21, marking the first time West Bengal will stage the Centre’s flagship Yoga Day celebrations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
is also likely to attend the event, which would also become one of the first major high-profile central government programmes to be hosted in the state after the BJP came to power, replacing the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government.
Union Minister of State for AYUSH Prataprao Jadhav announced the decision during the Yoga Mahotsav 2026 programme held at the Khajuraho Group of Monuments in Madhya Pradesh.
Speaking at the event, Jadhav said yoga is not merely a physical exercise but an important part of India’s ancient knowledge tradition that helps maintain both mental and physical well-being. He stressed that yoga has become increasingly important in ensuring healthy ageing and long-term fitness.
योग शारीरिक और मानसिक अनुशासन का ऐसा समन्वय है जो मन और शरीर को संतुलन प्रदान करता है। यशस्वी प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi जी के नेतृत्व में आज योग ने वैश्विक स्तर पर एक बड़े स्वास्थ्य आंदोलन का रूप ले लिया है।
इसी कड़ी में, आगामी 21 जून को अंतर्राष्ट्रीय योग दिवस (#IDY2026)… pic.twitter.com/rRPaC1atFg— Prataprao Jadhav (@mpprataprao) May 28, 2026
Thousands of people participated in a mass yoga session at Khajuraho as part of the Common Yoga Protocol demonstration organised during Yoga Mahotsav 2026.
During the programme, the government also launched the Yoga Sangam Portal and Yoga Park Portal and unveiled a new International Yoga Day T-shirt design. According to the AYUSH Ministry, more than two lakh people have so far participated in the free 100-day yoga training programme being conducted under the “Yoga 365” campaign.
International Yoga Day Theme, Venue
The theme for This year’s International Yoga Day has been finalised as “Yoga for Healthy Ageing.”
International Yoga Day is celebrated every year across India and across the world on June 21, but the Centre organises one grand flagship event at a selected location in the country. The 2026 edition will now be held in Kolkata for the first time.
International Yoga Day
Prime Minister Narendra Modi first proposed the idea of an International Day of Yoga during his address at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 27, 2014. The proposal received unprecedented support globally, with a record 177 countries co-sponsoring the resolution, which was formally adopted by the UN on December 11, 2014.
The inaugural International Yoga Day was celebrated on June 21, 2015, with a massive event held at Rajpath — now Kartavya Path — in New Delhi. The event created two Guinness World Records, including the largest yoga session involving 35,985 participants and the highest number of nationalities participating in a single yoga event.
