In a rare gesture, the New Mexico State Transportation Commission has renamed a state highway — Highway 106 — as ‘Yogi Bhajan Memorial Highway’ in memory of the late Harbhajan Singh Khalsa Yogiji. An Indian-American, he was known to his followers as Yogi Bhajan.

The renaming ceremony on April 28 brought to fruition the efforts of New Mexico Transportation Secretary Rhonda Faught. A resolution in this regard was unanimously passed in a meeting held in Pueblo Laguna, NM, in 2005.

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson in his remarks on the occasion said: ‘‘Yogiji was not only a spiritual leader, but was a business and social leader as well. And he kept a hand in politics too. I know many of the elected officials here today often sought his counsel in professional and personal matters, as I did many times. This highway is travelled by all of you and lies in the heart of your community; it is therefore with great pleasure that I declare New Mexico State Highway 106 as Yogi Bhajan Memorial Highway.’’

Yogiji left behind a legacy of ‘3HO’— Happy, Holy, Healthy Organisation — a nonprofit educational and scientific association offering guidance on nutrition, health and interpersonal relations. A teacher of Kundalini Yoga, he was also a successful businessman and owned Akal Security, a private security firm. He founded the Sikh Dharma, which propagated vegetarianism, Yoga and a white dress code. His followers are spread over New Mexico, California and Arizona.

Founder of sikhpoint.com Bicky Singh, who was invited to attend the function, said, ‘‘It was one of the greatest moments for Indians in the US. To have a highway where thousands can see the name of an Indian-American overwhelmed me. Being the only Indian-American present made me feel even more honoured.’’