‘Standardisation of ayurveda essential for global acceptance’

November 6, 2006

Monday November 6 2006 00:21 IST UNI

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PUNE: Union Health Minister Ahbumani Ramadoss here on Sunday reiterated the government’s commitment to standardise ayurvedic drugs with a ‘treatment protocol’ for global acceptance having already earmarked Rs 120 crore for infrastructure and development.

After inaugurating the 2nd World Ayurveda Congress at the Pune University, Dr Ramadoss told reporters that there is greater interest in traditional medicines and system of therapy the world over.

‘‘After taking diagnostic leads, many people opt for plant-based medicines. Therefore, there is a need to standardise drugs and monitor the mineral and other contents for the medicines to be acceptable. There has to be a scientific validation and molecular research,’’ he added.

‘‘Several contentious issues keep cropping up. For instance, the Forest Department does not permit medicinal plants to be taken by researchers. The allopathic medical courses do not offer any basic courses to understand the traditional medicines. Some foreign countries ban ayurvedic medicines as they come under the food category,’’ the Minister said, adding that to deal with this, a comprehensive approach is being worked out to include traditional systems in the curriculum of the MBBS courses.

‘‘Besides, three medicinal plantations have already come up and are being cultivated in Uttaranchal, Chhattisgarh and Kerala. Around ten such medicinal plantations have been planned, and they will address issues with the Forest Department,’’ he said.

About 3,000 delegates from India and abroad are participating in the 2nd World Ayurveda Congress. On the occasion, ‘Ayusoft’ – a decision support system for ayurveda developed by C-DAC was launched.