J-K: 98 pc construction work of International Yoga Centre in Matalai completed, says Udhampur DC

Deputy Commissioner of Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur on Monday said that 98 per cent of the construction of the International Yoga Centre in Matalai has been completed.

The International Yoga Centre, under construction in Udhampur's Mantalai is an initiative of the Government of India which aimed at publicising the Union Territory as a Medical Tourism destination with the upcoming six specialized Ayush wellness centres at Katra, Patnitop, and Mansar areas of Jammu, and Pahalgam, Gulmarg, and Sonmarg areas of Kashmir.

"Around 98 per cent of the construction work of this biggest project in Udhampur has been completed. Tourism and the local economy here will get a boost from the construction of this centre," DC Udhampur Kritika Jyotsna said.

Mantalai is located on the Himalayas in the sal forests' lap, the village, which has a peripheral view of both the plains as well as hills, will serve the International Yoga Centre at the banks of the Tawi river.

As the Tourism Ministry in the Government of India has sanctioned Rs 9,782 crore for this, the International Yoga Centre has been given a modern outlook with swimming pools, business convention centres, helipads, spas, cafeteria and dining halls, cottage-designed eco-lodge huts with solarium, gymnasium auditoriums, battery operated cars, meditation enclaves and a lot more. Notably, 90 per cent of the Centre's construction has already been completed so far.

As many as Rs 52 crore have also been nominated for the infrastructural and other development of the Katra-Vaishno Devi under the scheme of the Pilgrimage Rejuvenation And Spiritual, Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD).

The Centre in Mantalai and the Katra tourism, both are likely to boost the economic prospects of the state and reignite the passion for a spiritual rise.

The Ministery of Ayush is also working on a series of projects to promote the world's holistic oldest healthcare system in the Union Territory with the scheme-- one, medicinal plant conversation in the forests, and the development of herbal gardens at home for promoting the use of herbs in daily life.

The region at a high altitude also creates the right conditions for growing the world's rarest kinds of herbs.

The Indian government is also building an Ayurvedic Medical College at Jammu's Akhnoor with a budget of Rs 16.19 crore, a government Unani Medical College and Hospital at Ganderbal Kashmir worth Rs 32.50 crore, and 50-bedded integrated AYUSH hospitals in Kupwara, Kulgam, Kishtwar, Kathua, and Samba.

To upgrade the 370 Ayush Dispensaries and Ayush Health and Wellness Centres (AHWC) Rs 16.3 crore were allocated to the UT in November, as they provide consultation on Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Yoga, Unani and Siddha practices.

As per the reports, impressed by the achievements and spade works performed by the Directorate of Ayush in J-K in the last three years, the Indian government under the National Ayush Mission increased the approved funds from Rs 15 crore in 2021-22 to Rs 72 crore in 2022-23.

The Centre's vision for the J-K is to establish a holistic wellness model and to provide informed choices on ancient traditional Indian medicine to the public. They also want the youth of J&K to recognize the value of their land.

( With inputs from ANI )