Open public letter to The Hon'ble Minister of Health, India.

February 15, 2006

The Hon'ble Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India. cc: The Editor, The New Indian Express, India. Respected Sir, The epidemic of chronic diseases, as pointed out by your goodself recently in Pondicherry, is a cause for concern. Even with an annual budget of $3100 billion worldwide modern medicine feels that more funds are required to fight disease. Critics are now questioning why, despite tremendous "advances" in medical science and astronomical expenditure on health, humanity is in the throes of life threatening chronic illnesses. We think the public deserves some clear cut answers. In India the

drug industry has an annual turnover of Rs. 23,000 crores. Similiar amounts are spent on the upkeep of hospitals and diagnostic clinics both in the public and private sector. The expenditure is slated to go up at the rate of 30 percent every year. The lure of profits and not the intention to heal has gripped the entire medical industry dubbed the "most corrupt industry in the world" by the Global Corruption Report 2006. Though the Hon'ble Finance Minister of India has desisted from imposing the health cess the same cannot be ruled out if corrective steps are not taken. What if the health sector itself is to partially blame for this spurt in chronic diseases? Statements by ayurveds and homeopaths all over the world, as well as critics of modern medicine and hapless patients, seem to imply the same. Reductionist medicine is taking its toll, they say, as modern doctors tend to treat the patients as machines rather than as human beings. Modern

physics has long proved the holistic nature of the world but this does not reflect in the medical industry allege leading scientists of the world. Can India afford to remain complacent in the face of this danger? We stand to loose both healthwise and financially if the lopsided development in favour of modern medicine continues. As far back as 1940, health policy makers have warned that the Indian systems of medicine and homeopathy can be ignored only at our own peril. But 66 years have passed since then without the concerned officials paying significant heed to that warning. Sir, we would like to know how much out of the Rs. 50,000 crores promised by you towards health care reforms will go towards improving access to holistic methods of healing. We would also like to ask what became of the proposal to make available ayurveda and homeopathy at all public

hospitals and also the proposal to hand over the primary health centres to qualified BHMS and BAMS doctors. Associations of holistic health care systems have asked for an allocation of 25% of the health budget as against the present 3% to six systems of healing; only 1.5% was however released the last year as pointed out by the Hon'ble CAG. They have also asked for better management of the holistic medical colleges, filling up of teaching staff vacancies, hospitals exclusively devoted to holistic methods in every district and naturopathy clinics in every village. If these thoroughly justified demands are met then with an improved health sector we can usher in a much better scenario of positive wellness and also reduce the exorbitant, unnecessary and unjustifiable health costs. We sincerely hope your goodself will listen to the voice of the people and initiate more proactive steps in this

regard despite stiff opposition from the medical industry who seem more interested in warning the public about the "dangers of herbs and homeopathy" rather than developing permanent cures for chronic diseases.We have great faith in you Sir and we sincerely feel you will not let us down. Respectfully yours, Jagannath Chatterjee "Our ideal is not the spirituality that withdraws from life but the conquest of life by the power of the spirit." - Aurobindo.

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