BABA RAMDEV

Ramkishan Yadav popularly known as Swami Ramdev (Hindi: स्वामी रामदेव), is an Indian Hindu swami. He is known for his efforts in popularizing yoga as it is enunciated in Patanjali's Yoga Sutras. He is also one of the founders of the Divya Yog Mandir Trust headquartered in Haridwar, that aims to popularize Yoga and offer Ayurvedic treatments. The New York Times calls him an "Indian who built Yoga Empire", "a product and symbol of the New India, a yogic fusion of Richard Simmons, Dr. Oz and Oprah Winfrey, irrepressible and bursting with Vedic wisdom".

His camps are attended by a large number of people. Over 85 million people follow his yoga camps via TV channels and video. His yoga teaching sessions are for the masses and free for all.

Swami Ramdev's flagship project, the Patanjali Yogpeeth (PYP) Trust, was inaugurated on August 6, 2006. Its aim is to build the world's largest center for Ayurveda and Yoga that includes facilities for treatment, research and a teaching university. The trust primarily offers free treatment to those who cannot afford to pay. For others, treatment is provided at a lower cost than at hospitals.

Through PYP, Swami Ramdev continues to work with various institutions and medical organizations in an effort to study and improve the effectiveness of yoga against diseases like diabetes, hypertension, obesity, etc.

Swami Ramdev has acquired a Scottish isle for about £2 million to set up a wellness retreat. The Little Cumbrae Island, off the fishing town of Largs in Scotland, will also serve as the guru’s base overseas, where his teachings of yoga as a means to cleanse the body and mind are gaining popularity. The acquisition itself was carried out by a Scottish couple of Indian origin, Sam and Sunita Poddar, who saw recession and the resultant fall in property prices as an opportunity to expand the base of Patanjali Yogpeeth — the institution founded by Ramdev for scientific research and treatment in yog, spiritualism and ayurveda. The island property has been inaugurated in September 2009 with a ‘Yagna or 'Yagya’(a Vedic Sanatan Dharm prayer in the presence of a purifying fire), will be administered by the Patanjali Yogpeeth (UK) Trust.

Swami Ramdev has raised a number of national issues through his yoga camps (yog shivirs). Most of the issues raised by him demand change in the governance policies of India and the lifestyle of the common people. Some of the most emphasized issues are: