Ministry of Ayush

13-Aug-2022: New Headquarters Office Building of Central Council for Research in Siddha inaugurated

Union Minister of Ayush Shri Sarbananda Sonowal dedicated two new building of Ayush institutes to the people of India on the occasion of 75th year of Independence. Shri Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated new building headquarters office of Central Council for Research in Siddha (CCRS) at Tambaram Sanatorium, Chennai and new extension OPD block of Ayothidoss Pandithar Hospital of National Institute of Siddha today.

On this occasion Shri Ma. Subramanian, Minister for Health and Family Welfare Govt. of Tamil Nadu, Prof. (Dr.) K. Kankavalli, Director General, CCRS, Prof. (Dr.) R. Meenakumari, Director, National Institute of Siddha, Shri Pramod Kumar Pathak, Special Secretary, Ministry of Ayush, and other distinguished guests, CCRS officials & Staff, NIS faculty members were present.

Addressing the gathering, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, said, “I am deeply grateful and thankful to Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji for giving a special impetus to all the Ayush systems including Siddha nationally as well as globally. I believe that with this new infrastructure, further more innovations and academic developments will blossom in the minds of the scientists, academicians and students. I am expecting better outcomes in both research and academics from CCRS and NIS.”

Central Council for Research in Siddha (CCRS) is an apex organization for Research in Siddha system of medicine. Its prime focus is to scientifically validate the claims of Siddhars for global acceptance. CCRS have recently proved the strength of Siddha formulations during the COVID-19 pandemic through scientific validation by carrying out Randomized Double-Blind Placebo Controlled Trials and has published more than 30 quality research articles in peer reviewed journals.

Whereas, National Institute of Siddha (NIS) is an apex and premier Institute for Siddha system of Medicine with a primary mandate for patient care, teaching and research in higher education for post graduate and doctoral research scholars.

12-Aug-2022: MoU signed between Ministry of Ayush and Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)

An Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed today between Ministry of Ayush and Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) for providing technical support to Ministry of Ayush for digitalisation of Ayush Sector under the Ayush Grid project for a period of 3 years. This MoU is continuation of the earlier MoU , which was signed in the year 2019. Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ayush and Shri Alkesh Kumar Sharma, Secretary MeitY signed MoU on behalf of both the Ministries. It was decided that both the Ministry’s will continue to work in collaboration and MeitY along with organizations under MeitY will extend all technical support required for the Ayush Grid project including adoption of emerging technologies.

Ministry of Ayush has conceptualized ‘Ayush Grid’ Project, as part of the Digital India Program, which leverages ‘Information and Technology’ to transform operational efficiency, improve service delivery and enhance quality of services. The Ayush Grid platform is envisaged to be the IT backbone; allowing integration of all stakeholders and functions/ services related to Ayush systems of health care. From a user’s perspective, Ayush Grid is the proposed central IT platform offering multiple IT services for all systems of medicines under Ayush viz. Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, Sowa Rigpa and Homeopathy across functional areas, namely, healthcare delivery, education, research, capacity building, drug licensing and standardization along with media outreach.

As per the earlier signed MoU, organizations under MeitY like NeGD supported for development of Ayush Sanjivani mobile application, Monitoring dashboard, BISAG-N for development of Ayush GIS, Ayush education related modules, DIC for development of Ayush Information Hub, website of the Ministry, Ayusoft, C-DAC for imparting training to Ayush doctors. It is pertinent to mention that NeGD and BISAG-N provided valuable inputs in finalization of various technical documents like technical solution design & DPR of the Project.

A High-Level Advisory Committee (HLAC), chaired by Secretary Ayush and co-chaired by Secretary MeitY was constituted to provide advisory inputs on Ayush Grid project. A working group was also constituted under the chairmanship of Sh. J. Satyanarayana (Former Secretary MeitY& Chairman UIDAI) with other experts from NITI Aayog, NHA, MeitY etc. for giving expert inputs on right architecture, identify core building blocks, leveraging development under ABDM, understanding requirement of building public private ecosystem and various technical and strategy matters for Ayush Grid project. This helped Ministry to shape technical construct of the project.

MoU signed today will be instrumental for leveraging technical support from MeitY in Ayush Grid project of the Ministry of Ayush.

5-Aug-2022: New Ayush wings in Defence and Railway Hospitals

Ministry of Ayush signed a MoU with Ministry of Railway for Introduction of Ayush Systems in five Railways Hospitals resulting into establishment of Ayush units at 5 Railway zonal hospitals at Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Guwahati.

Ministry of Ayush has collaborated with Ministry of Defence resulting in the establishment of Ayurveda OPDs at 12 AFMS (Armed Force Medical Services) Hospitals and 37 Cantonment Board Hospitals. These facilities are successfully operational with effect from 1st week of June 2022.

Ministry of Ayush had a Central Sector Scheme namely Champion Services Sector Scheme for Medical Value Travel. There were three components of this scheme i.e. (1) Establishment of Ayush Super speciality Hospitals / Daycare Centres, (2) Skill development in Ayush sector and (3) Establishment of Ayush Grid.

First component of Champion Services Sector Scheme was Establishment of Ayush Super speciality Hospitals / Daycare Centres in which the financial assistance in the form of Interest Subsidy is provided to private investors for the establishment of Super Specialty Hospitals/ Day Care Centres of the systems recognized under the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) Act, 2020 or the National Commission for Homeopathy (NCH) Act, 2020 on Pan India basis. The scheme period ended on 31st march 2022.Under this Component Ministry of Ayush had received 81 proposals for setting up of Ayush hospitals/Centers across the country. Out of 81 proposals, 03 proposals were approved.

Ministry of Ayush has developed a Central Sector Scheme i.e. Ayur Swasthya Yojana in which there is a component called Up-gradation of facilities to Centre of Excellence (CoE). The main objective of CoE component is to support establishment and upgradation of both functions and facilities of reputed institutions to strengthen Ayush professionals in education, technology, research & innovation and other fields necessary for promotion of Ayush at National as well International level.

Institute of Teaching & Research in Ayurveda(ITRA)-Jamnagar has been conferred the status of Institute of National Importance in October, 2020 under ITRA Act 2020 by amalgamating three different institutes namely, the Institute of Post Graduate Teaching and Research in Ayurveda, Jamnagar, Shree Gulabkunverba Ayurved Mahavidyalaya, Jamnagar and Indian Institute of Ayurvedic Pharmaceutical Sciences, Jamnagar. The ITRA Act, 2020 has come into force w.e.f. 22nd September, 2020.

26-Jul-2022: Implementation of Ayush Schemes

Ministry of Ayush is implementing the following Schemes in the country under ‘Central Sector’ and ‘Centrally Sponsored Scheme’ categories:

1. Centrally Sponsored Scheme

National AYUSH Mission (NAM).

2. Central Sector Scheme

Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) in AYUSH
Champion Services Sector Scheme for Medical Value Travel
AYURGYAN
AYURSWASTHYA Yojana
AYUSH Oushadi Gunvatta evum Uttapadan Samvardhan Yojana (AOGUSY).
Scheme for Conservation Development and Sustainable Management of Medicinal Plants.
Promotion of International Co-operation in AYUSH.

Under Centrally Sponsored Scheme of National AYUSH Mission (NAM), financial assistance is provided to the State/UT Governments as per the proposals submitted by them in their respective State Annual Action Plans (SAAPs) and as per the NAM guidelines

The said schemes are being implemented within the stipulated time limit and the detail is as under: -

Centrally Sponsored Scheme of National Ayush Mission was launched in the year 2014-15. Further, its continuation has been approved by the Union Cabinet from 2021-22 to 2025-26.
The Central Sector Scheme of Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) has been approved for the period from FY 2021-22 to FY 2025-26.
Central Sector Scheme of Champion Services Sector Scheme for Medical Value Travel was implemented for the period from FY 2019-2020 to FY 2021-2022.
Central Sector Scheme of AYURGYAN has been approved for the period from FY 2021-22 to FY 2025-26.
Central Sector Scheme of AYURSWASTHYA Yojana has been approved for the period from FY 2021-22 to FY 2025-26.
Central Sector Scheme of AYUSH Oushadi Gunvatta evum Uttapadan Samvardhan Yojana (AOGUSY) was approved by Standing Finance Committee (SFC) on 16th March 2021 for five years.
Central Sector Scheme for Conservation Development and Sustainable Management of Medicinal Plants FY 2021-22 to FY 2025-26.
Central Sector Scheme for Promotion of International Co-operation in AYUSH has been approved for the period from FY 2021-22 to FY 2025-26.

25-May-2022: MoU signed between Ministry of Ayush and Department of Biotechnology

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Ministry of Ayush and Department of Biotechnology, Government of India for mutual collaboration to explore the possibility of cooperation, convergence and synergy to bring out the expertise under one platform towards evidence based biotechnological interventions in Ayush sector. Secretary, Ministry of Ayush Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha and Secretary, Department of Biotechnology Dr. Rajesh S Gokhale were present on this occasion along with other official of both the ministries.

Through this association it is expected that traditional healthcare and biotechnology together would enable tremendous possibilities to undertake innovative and path-breaking research, which can be used for the exploration of various fundamental principles of Ayush systems. There is a need of multi-pronged and technological ways for the exploration and application of this ancient scientific system of health care into the public health care domain.

Biotechnological R & D and Ayush Interventions will improve quality of life as well as life span (Vayahsthaapana Rasayana) and bring down the associated morbidity pertaining to chronic diseases such as diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, osteoarthritis, cachexia, pain management and infectious diseases for example Tuberculosis.

On this occasion, Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha said that MoU between Ministry of Ayush and DBT is expected to pave way for coordinated researches in Ayush sector and the huge untapped potential of Ayush health care system may be utilized for the community benefit.

Addressing the gathering, Dr. Rajesh S Gokhale said that this Inter Ministerial cooperation between Ministry of Ayush and DBT is expected to generate knowledge and new means of intervention strategies for difficult to treat diseases.

This joint R&D effort ranging from fundamental science to validation and thereafter product development, will significantly help in the growth of the Indian contributions to this important sector, not only nationally but internationally as well. Emphasis would be given to mechanistic studies of Ayurveda Therapeutics using animal models of disease and other advanced analytical methods along with data analytical tools.

21-May-2022: Indian Traditional Medicine sector gets a boost as Ayush Ministry announces major initiatives in Sikkim & North East

The Union Minister for Ayush and Ports, Shipping & Waterways Shri Sarbananda Sonowal announced major initiatives to boost the traditional medicinal practice including Sowa Rigpa, Ayurveda and Naturopathy in the state of Sikkim today. The Minister was attending the National Workshop on Sowa Rigpa - the traditional & ancient medicinal practice of Himalayan people in Sikkim.

The Ayush Minister announced that an International Yoga & Naturopathy College will be set up in Sikkim which will boost the medical tourism sector in the Northeast India. Underlying the importance of Sowa Rigpa& its further exposure among people for enriching their quality of life, a 30 bedded Sowa Rigpa Hospital is going to be set up in Sikkim. Furthering the Ayush initiatives in the Northeast region, the Union Minister announced setting up of Yoga & Wellness centre at every Gram Panchayat level in the state along with an Ayurveda Medical College under Satellite Institute programme in Sikkim. Highlighting the importance of Ayush based growth in the region, the Union Ayush Minister also said that the Ministry is exploring the possibility to set up a Research Council for Sowa Rigpa.

The National Workshop on Sowa Rigpa was also attended by the Governor of Sikkim, Shri Ganga Prasad as its Chief Guest; the Chief Minister of Sikkim, Shri Prem Singh Tamang as Guest of Honour; MoS for Ayush and WCD Dr Munjapara Mahendrabhai Kalubhai as Guest of Honour along with the Minister of Health & Family Welfare Department Government of Sikkim, Dr Mani Kumar Sharma.

The two day workshop was organised by the National Institute of Sowa Rigpa (NISR), under the Ministry of Ayush in collaboration with Namgyal Institute of Tibetology (NIT) at Gangtok in Sikkim. The workshop was attended by Practitioners, Academicians, students and other stakeholders of Sowa Rigpa medicinal practice of Himalayan people.

The Union Minister along with other dignitaries virtually inaugurated the Sowa Rigpa College Building at NIT in Deorali, Gangtok.

Speaking after the event, Shri Sonowal said that the beautiful state of Sikkim has much to offer to heal human health & soul and we have much to gain from the rich heritage of Sowa Rigpa. He said that all the traditional Indian medicinal practices can offer tremendously along with the modern medicinal practices to enrich human lives & improve quality of lives of people.

Adding further about the role of Ayush in the Northeast, Sarbananda Sonowal said, “Ayurveda & Yoga has given a tremendous fillip to the stature of India at the global stage. we are confident that other traditional Indian medicinal practices will further embolden this achievement of India. Our great nation - India - has been known to heal both health & spirit since time immemorial. Northeast is the new engine of growth for India. Our rich flora can help rejuvenate the Ayush based growth in the region. We are taking steps to create a platform for the tremendous potential that Ayush has in Northeast India. We are confident that Sikkim and all of Northeast will seize this opportunity and become major stakeholders in unlocking the economic potential.”

The Chief Minister of Sikkim, Prem Singh Tamang said, “The practitioner of traditional medicine have substantial knowledge of herbs and their effect on healing organically. Sowa Rigpa is one of the oldest and well documented medicinal traditions of the world. The people of the Himalayan region has been using this since time immemorial and its prevalence in treating & healing is still strong among this region as well as in Sikkim.”

22-Mar-2022: Revival of Ayurvedic medicines

Ayurvedic system of medicine is an existing ancient traditional system of medicine of India. Its role has significantly been boosted with the establishment of Ministry of Ayush, which has resulted into focused growth of the sector in terms of medical education, practice, manufacturing, research and International cooperation. The significance and usage of Ayurvedic medicines has been further noticed during the wake of Covid -19.

Separate data of earning from selling Ayurvedic medicines is not available. However, as per records the total Ayush and herbal medicines export of India has been of US$ 1.54 billion in the year 2020. (Source: Ayush Sector in India prospects and challenges published by Forum on India Traditional Medicines FITM-Research and Information Systems RIS-Ministry of AYUSH).

In domestic market Indian Medicines Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited (IMPCL), a Government of India Enterprises under Ministry of Ayush has reported sale of Ayurvedic &Unani Medicines of about Rs. 164.02 Crore during the year 2020-21.

Under the provisions of Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Rules made thereunder, it is mandatory for the manufacturer of Ayurvedic drugs to comply with the prescribed Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and quality standards of drugs given in the Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia for obtaining licence from the concerned State Licensing Authority (SLA). The SLA grants the licence after verification of the required infrastructural facilities, equipment / machinery, manpower of the manufacturing unit through inspection(s) conducted by the inspector.

Further, the following steps are being taken to ensure safety and quality of Ayurvedic medicines by the State Government Officers empowered under Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Rules there under:

Survey samples, legal samples and market samples are drawn regularly and sent to Government Drug Testing Laboratory to ascertain the quality of medicine.
Investigation of the complaints related to quality of Drugs.
Launch of prosecution in case of violation of Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Rules thereunder.

There is one central appellate laboratory of Pharmacopoeia Commission of Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy (PCIM&H), Ghaziabad for testing of Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Homoeopathy (ASU&H) drugs. Apart from this 35 State Drug Testing Laboratories for testing of Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Homoeopathy (ASU&H) drugs are funded by the Ministry of Ayush through its schemes. Also, 67 Private Drug Testing Laboratories have been approved for testing of Ayush drugs under Drugs & Cosmetics Rules 1945 as on 1st April, 2021.

8-Mar-2022: Tripartite MoU signed between Ministry of Ayush, CSIR, and ICAR for collaboration in areas of common interest

Ministry of Ayush has signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding with Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), and Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) for Inter-Ministerial co-operation for the promotion and facilitation of research and development, validation, and deployment of Agri-technologies related to medicinal plants and their value-added products of benefit to humans, plants and animals.

The MoU was signed by Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of Ayush, Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Director General, ICAR and Secretary, Department of Agricultural Research and Education, and Dr. Shekhar C. Mande, Director General, CSIR and Secretary, DSIR in the presence of senior officials from the three organizations in New Delhi.

Previously, the Parties had bilateral cooperation with each other. The national aspirations related to Atmanirbhar Bharat draws necessity for multi-party stakeholder cooperation to achieve the defined goals. India with its vast history of rich culture and traditions has been endowed with valuable scientific heritage in the fields of health, wellness, agriculture, and food among many others. This rich heritage holds relevance not only in contemporary times but would address futuristic needs as well, by way of cooptation and integration with modern science and technology.

The key objective of the tripartite MoU signed today by the Ministry of Ayush, ICAR and CSIR is to draw cognizance to the traditional agricultural practices of India, and take up joint R&D pursuits for validating and deploying these interventions for facilitating socio-economic growth in the country.

On this occasion, Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of Ayush drew attention to valuable traditional knowledge in the form of Vrikshayurved, Mrigayurved, etc., stating that the cooperation will be instrumental in validating these traditional sciences and practices towards integrative agriculture for the benefit of not only humans, but also plants and animals. He also touched upon the Ayurved Aahar initiative of the Ministry of Ayush and International Year of Millets in 2023, and the potential of the three Parties to contribute to the cause and promote healthy food habits based on traditional diets of India

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Director General, ICAR and Secretary, DARE stated that the cooperation being signed by ICAR, Ayush and CSIR is a historical milestone towards reaffirming the mandates of the three organizations to the national goals on food & agriculture. The effort will focus on specific joint activities by the three Parties in the said areas to make a significant impact to the lives of Indians.

Dr. Shekhar C. Mande, DG, CSIR and Secretary, DSIR appreciated the organic linkages of CSIR with ICAR in the area of agriculture including horti-floriculture, and the Ministry of Ayush towards promoting traditional medicines, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. He drew importance to the tripartite cooperation being brought during the day for linking the vastness of Indian traditional knowledge through modern S&T tools and the common goals of the Parties towards Atmanirbhar Bharat, especially towards ensuring food security and enhancing the livelihoods of the farmers.

The Secretaries proposed to form a Joint Working Group involving officers from the Ministry of Ayush, ICAR, and CSIR for effective implementation of the MoU. This JWG will meet at least twice in a year to follow up the execution of this MoU and suggest necessary measures for its development.

8-Sep-2021: Ministry of Ayush all set to explore Career paths of students in Ayush Systems

The Ministry of Ayush is now exploring the avenues to involve students in a more inclusive way and to build their career paths in Ayush Systems. To roll it out, the Ministry is organizing a Conference on the theme ‘Diverse and Fulfilling Career Paths in Ayush Systems-Education, Entrepreneurship & Employment Focus on North-Eastern States’. The conference will be in Guwahati, Assam, on 10th September. Union Minister of Ayush Shri Sarbananda Sonowal along with respective Head of Ayush Institutions and Research organizations will interact with the students directly in this conference.

This is the first time that a conference focusing on students and their career choices and the potential of start-ups in the sector is being organized by the Ministry of Ayush. In August, the Ayush and health ministers of all north-eastern states had participated in a conference, organized by The Ayush Ministry, that extensively discussed the infrastructure development and promotion of Ayush medicine system.

The conference on Friday will delve upon diverse and fulfilling career paths in Ayush systems with special focus on education, entrepreneurship and employment in north-eastern states. There will be presentations on education and career opportunities in all streams of Ayush – Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Unani, Sowa-Rigpa, Siddha, Yoga and Naturopathy – by experts. They will also explore and discuss the industry perspective and talk about the possibility of young professionals setting up their business and start-ups.

The event will also have an interactive session of the students and scholars with the experts of the streams. The conference will have a deep focus on North Eastern States and the experts like Professor Sanjeev Sharma, Director National Institute of Ayurveda, Dr. Subhas Singh, NIII, Kolkata, Prof. Asim Ali Khan , DG, CCRS, New Delhi, Prof. Dr. Kanakavalli, DG, CCRS, Chennai, Dr. Padma Gurmeet , Director NRIS, Leh with others will speak upon research education, career opportunities in respective Ayush Systems.

3-May-2021: Ayush Ministry takes steps to increase availability of AYUSH 64 across the country

The COVID-19 pandemic, especially the surge in cases over the past few weeks, has been described as the biggest public health challenge faced by the country in a century. During this period, the potential of Ayush systems of healthcare in addressing the physical and emotional health issues has been tapped into by individuals and medical practitioners alike on a large scale, and many remarkable outcomes have been reported.

Repurposing of AYUSH- 64, the polyherbal Ayurvedic medicine, for treating of COVID-19 has been one of the most significant developments in this area. AYUSH- 64 was originally developed in 1980 for treatment of malaria, and it complies with all regulatory requirements and quality and Pharmacopoeial standards. CCRAS recently concluded extensive robust clinical trials of the drug focusing on the management of asymptomatic, mild to moderate COVID-19 in collaboration with the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and many other research organizations and medical colleges across the country. The trials led by reputed scientists of the country showed AYUSH 64 has notable antiviral, immune-modulator and antipyretic properties. It is found to be useful in the treatment of asymptomatic, mild and moderate COVID-19 infection. Consequently, the drug is now repurposed for COVID-19. This was announced by the Ministry in a press conference on 29th April 2021.

The Ministry has since taken steps to streamline the distribution of AYUSH 64 across the country and ramp up its production, so that it becomes available to a large number of people in a short time. As part of this effort, CCRAS and National Research and Development Centre (NDRC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the larger production and commercialization of AYUSH 64 with mutual cooperation. The Ayush Ministry on 27 April 2021 has also issued advisory to all State Licensing Authorities of ASU medicines to repurpose AYUSH-64 as an intervention for the management of mild to moderate COVID-19 in addition to existing indications.

Emphasizing the need for ensuring the availability of AYUSH 64 across the country, the Ministry has encouraged more pharmaceutical companies to come forward and obtain a manufacturing licence for this medicine. Interested companies for the transfer of technology can approach CCRAS and the NRDC. The CCRAS will provide technical support to the ASU drugs manufacturers in the manufacturing of AYUSH-64. Further, the State Licensing Authorities are expediting the process of the licensing/approval of such applications, provided the prescribed standards and relevant provisions of the Drugs & Cosmetics Rules, 1945, are fulfilled.

The State and UT administrations are also expected to contribute further to this mobilisation through the vehicle of the National Ayush Mission, under which a country-wide Ayush network is already in place. The State Health Authorities will be promoting the use of AYUSH-64 as per National Clinical Management Protocol based on Ayurveda and Yoga interventions.

8-Apr-2021: An MoU signed between Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying and Ministry of AYUSH to introduce the concept of Ayurveda and its allied disciplines into veterinary science

A Memorandum of Understanding between Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD), Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India and Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India was signed on 7th April, 2021 to introduce the concept of Ayurveda and its allied disciplines into veterinary science by their promotion in research and development including research on new formulations in quality drugs for veterinary science through medicinal herbs.

This cooperation will definitely help to develop a regulatory mechanism for the use of Ayurveda in the veterinary sector for the benefit of animal health, livestock owners’ community and the society at large. The initiative involves capacity building in related areas through training, exploring marketing possibilities for herbal veterinary medicines on a sustainable basis and providing for services including cultivation, preservation and conservation of medicinal plants. The cooperation will help in developing herbal veterinary education programs and creating awareness among dairy farmers and agro-farmers about utilization and importance of herbal veterinary medicine and cultivation of medicinal herbs.

7-Apr-2021: MoU Signed between Ministry of AYUSH and Department of Animal Husbandry for research on new formulations in quality drugs for veterinary science

An Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the National Medicinal Plants Board (NMPB), Ministry of AYUSH and Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying today for research on new formulations in quality drugs for veterinary science through medicinal herbs. The initiative involves capacity building in related areas through training, exploring marketing possibilities for herbal veterinary medicines on a sustainable basis and providing for services including cultivation, preservation and conservation of medicinal plants. The MoU was signed by Dr J.L.N. Sastry, Chief Executive Officer, National Medicinal Plants Board, Ministry of AYUSH and Shri Upamanyu Basu, Joint Secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying in presence of Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH and Shri Atul Chaturvedi, Secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying in presence of other senior officers from both the organisations.

The Ministry of AYUSH will support Department of Animal Husbandry for developing curriculum and courses for AYUSH herbal veterinary education programs, identifying potential medicinal plant species used in veterinary medicine and provide their standards, training and awareness program on Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs)& Good Field Collection Practices (GFCPs) etc., development of Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) for manufacturing of AYUSH/herbal veterinary medicines, skill development and capacity building, facilitate and render financial assistance for plantations and nursery development for medicinal plants, facilitate standardizing norms for medicinal plants, assist establishing research and testing centers as per scope of the Scheme.

The Department of Animal Husbandry will support Ministry of AYUSH for its expert technical opinion for essentiality, desirability and feasibility with respect to Ayurvedic medicines. The Department will create awareness with support of NDDB among dairy farmers and agro-farmers about utilization and importance of herbal veterinary medicine and cultivation of medicinal herbs, develop course curriculum for Ayurveda and its allied subjects in veterinary medicine, identify list of priority livestock and poultry diseases of economic importance with respect to research activity or application of veterinary Ayurveda and allied streams, support farmers for undertaking cultivation and conservation of medicinal plants and related activities, support identify opportunities for scientific and technological collaboration to research institute (Veterinary Colleges and ICAR research institutes).

15-Feb-2021: Signing Ceremony of Letter of Exchange between Ministry of Ayush, Government of India and the who on Cooperation in the field Traditional Medicine

The Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India and the World Health Organization South East Regional Office (WHO SEARO) signed a Letter of Exchange (LoE) for the secondment/deputation of an AYUSH expert to WHO’s regional traditional medicine programme in New Delhi, India amidst a signing ceremony organized at WHO-SEARO, New Delhi today.

Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India and Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director of WHO South-East Asia Region signed the Agreement.

The initiative has been taken to support the WHO SEAR implementing the regional traditional medicine action plan, with particular emphasis on the safe and effective use of traditional medicine service including Ayurveda and other Indian traditional systems of medicine and its appropriate integration into national health care systems. Efforts will also be made to strengthen capacities of SEAR countries in the area of traditional medicine.

This partnership will also be joint efforts of Ministry of AYUSH and WHO in helping countries in the South-East Asia Region to develop policies and to implement action plans to strengthen the role of traditional medicine.

At the ceremony to mark the start of this partnership, WHO South East Asia Regional Director, Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh said, ‘The close collaboration of WHO and the Government of India goes back many decades, to the Basic Agreement both parties concluded on 16 July 1952, to fulfill mutual responsibilities in a spirit of friendly cooperation. Today’s agreement will formally extend this cooperation into the area of traditional medicine, which is a valuable tool in our shared quest to achieve universal health coverage.’

On this occasion, Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH, Govt. of India said that M/o AYUSH has already had various interaction with the WHO in the field of Ayurveda, Yoga and other Indian Traditional system of Medicine (AYUSH) and these Indian systems are getting more popular & being accepted as Medicinal system in the South- East Asian countries, African countries, European countries, Latin America etc..

As a major outcome of this partnership, Ministry of AYUSH and WHO would be working to identify various challenges faced by the member states of SEAR (region) in regulating, integrating and further promoting of Traditional systems of Medicine in the respective countries. Further, Ministry of AYUSH and WHO will assist Member States to develop appropriate policy/regulation framework, exchange of information/activities performed for integration of TM in public health and dissemination of information about TM to the community, said Secretary, AYUSH.

On this occasion, the Ministry of AYUSH, Govt. of India and the WHO SEAR office also agreed to launch a public health research project on COVID. The project is jointly supported by WHO SEARO and Ministry of AYUSH.

9-Feb-2021: Harmonising Ayush and Modern Medicine

There is no status gap between modern medicine and AYUSH as both systems are working in collaboration with integrated approach to address the healthcare in the country. The details of various initiatives undertaken by the Ministry of AYUSH for harmonization of both sectors of modern medicine and AYUSH system of medicine are as under:-

Government of India has adopted a strategy of Co-location of AYUSH facilities at Primary Health Centres (PHCs), Community Health Centres (CHCs) and District Hospitals (DHs), thus enabling choice to the patients for different systems of medicines under single window. The engagement of AYUSH Doctors/ paramedics and their training is supported by the Department of Health & Family Welfare, while the support for AYUSH infrastructure, equipment / furniture and medicines are provided by Ministry of AYUSH under Centrally Sponsored Scheme of National AYUSH Mission (NAM). Under NAM, financial assistance is being provided for Co-location of AYUSH facilities at Primary Health Centers (PHCs), Community Health Centers (CHCs) and District Hospitals (DHs). State and UT Governments may avail eligible financial assistance by projecting the same through State Annual Action Plan (SAAP) as per NAM guidelines.
Ministry of AYUSH in collaboration with Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has implemented National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS) for health promotion, prevention and management of Non-communicable diseases or Lifestyle related disorders through its three research councils, namely, Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS), Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM) and Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH) in various districts across the country .
CCRAS conducts research utilizing integrated clinical research protocols adopting Ayurveda parameters & parameters of conventional bio-medicines. The protocols are developed with an expert consultation of allopathic and Ayurveda experts. Research studies of Ayurveda intervention for efficacy and safety are conducted at hospitals such as AIIMS, New Delhi; BHU, Varanasi; KGME, Lucknow and many other reputed institutions. CCRAS has conducted many feasibility operational studies to integrate Ayurveda and allopathy that have shown encouraging results. Operational study to explore the feasibility of integrating Ayurveda with modern system of medicine in a tertiary care hospital (Safdarjung Hospital New Delhi) for the management of Osteoarthritis (Knee). Feasibility of introducing Indian System of Medicine (Ayurveda) in the National Reproductive and Child Health services at Primary Health Care (PHC) level in Himachal Pradesh.
CCRH has conducted studies at setup of Modern Medicine or comparison with modern medicine either standalone or add-on Homoeopathy on different clinical conditions such as Dengue, Acute Encephalitis Syndrome, Diabetic foot ulcer, alcohol dependence, Acute Otitis media, Covid-19. The results of these studies are encouraging with benefits from standalone/add-on Homoeopathy.
To integrate Yoga in the mainstream medical care, Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga under the Ministry of AYUSH is running 4 Yoga Therapy Centres at Government Medicine Hospitals in Delhi at Vallabhbhai Patel Chest Institute, University of Delhi; Rajan Babu Institute of Pulmonary Medicine and Tuberculosis; National Institute of Tuberculosis & Respiratory Disease and Institute of Behaviour & Allied Sciences.
To establish synergy between Siddha System and modern medicine, National Institute of Siddha, Chennai under the Ministry of AYUSH has entered into MoU with organizations such as National Institute of Epidemiology (ICMR), AIIMS Raipur etc.

9-Feb-2021: Promotion of Ayush in Rural and Urban Areas

As per key indicators of the NSS 75th round on Social Consumption on Health in India conducted by National Statistics Office (NSO), MOSPI during July 2017- June 2018, it was found that 95.4% of ailments were treated by allopathy and only 4.4% ailments were treated by AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) at all India level.

National Statistical Office (NSO) does not conduct specific survey on AYUSH but undertakes survey on health and morbidity periodically. Further, AYUSH system is fragmented and the surveys may not be capturing entire gamete of AYUSH facilities.

In NSS 75th round survey on Social Consumption on Health in India, higher usage (0.6 percentage point) of ‘AYUSH’ treatment by rural male than its urban counterpart and less usage of ‘AYUSH’ treatment (0.4 percentage point) by rural female than urban female has been reported.

Use of AYUSH treatment by Rural and Urban Male and Female is given below:-

Sector	Percentage of ailments treated by AYUSH
	Male	Female
Rural	4.2	4.7
Urban	3.6	5.1
All	4.1	4.8

However, Government of India is implementing Centrally Sponsored Scheme National AYUSH Mission (NAM) through States/UTs which envisages:

Better access to AYUSH services by supporting States/UTs for opening integrated AYUSH hospitals, up-gradation of AYUSH hospitals and dispensaries, supply of AYUSH medicines.
Strengthening of AYUSH educational institutions by strengthening States/UTs to improve infrastructure of education institutions.
Facilitate the enforcement of quality control of Ayurveda, Siddha and Unani & Homoeopathy (ASU&H) drugs by establishment of AYUSH pharmacies and drugs testing laboratories.
Sustainable availability of ASU & H raw-materials by encouraging cultivation of medicinal plants.

In addition, this Ministry has also released Grant-in-aid of Rs. 2583.666 Crores to States/UTs for different activities of NAM since inception of NAM in 2014 to till date.

11-Jan-2021: AYUSH Ministry’s webinar on Nidra and Yoga highlights the role of sleep in promoting good health

“NIDRA- A webinar on Yoga and Sleep” hosted by the Central Council for Research in Yoga & Naturopathy (CCRYN), an Autonomous Body under the Ministry of AYUSH succeeded in focusing attention on a critical, but often neglected factor of health, namely, sleep. The webinar was held on 7th January 2021. The webinar was attended by sleep specialists which included Neurologists, Psychiatrists, Clinicians, Researchers, and Yoga & Naturopathy physicians. In the scientific session, experts discussed a variety of topics related to sleep, its importance and the benefits of Yoga Nidra.

Among the many experts who took part in the webinar, Dr HN Mallick, former Professor, AIIMS, New Delhi spoke about the Importance of sleep and biological rhythm, physiology of sleep and factors that influence the circadian rhythm. Explained in detail various aspects of Obstructive Sleep apnea and its effects on health, Dr Ravi Gupta, Additional Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Division of Sleep Medicine, AIIMS, Rishikesh emphasized on strategies that can help in improving obstructive sleep apnea like reducing weight, breathing exercises, yoga & pranayama along with other treatment modalities. Dr Karuna Datta, Professor, Sports Medicine & Coordinator Department of Medical Education, AFMC Pune also shared her experience with the intervention of Yoga Nidra in insomnia patients.

Shri Vikram Singh, Director, Ministry of AYUSH added a common man’s perspective, and explained a good sleep pattern led to increased productivity in everyday life. Sleep has become all the more important in the new “normal” conditions post Covid-19 and we all need to pay closer attention to it.

Highlighting how yoga helps in improving the quality of sleep, Dr Raghavendra Rao, Director, CCRYN spoke about the effect of yoga and sleep modulation in cancer and COVID positive patients. He elaborated on how the breath rate variability was higher in Covid positive patients compared to healthy individuals. After a good discussion and presentations by the experts on various topics, the scientific session with an affirmation on increased scientific studies on various aspects of sleep and the linkage between adequate sleep and good health. The CCRYN resolved to coordinate research projects on the subject, including special focus on the impart of “Yoga Nidra”.