Traditional Medicine Research in India

General Studies Paper-3

Context

• Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) has designated the National Institute of Indian Medical Heritage, Hyderabad as a WHO Collaborating Centre for ‘Fundamental and Literary Research in Traditional Medicine’.

About the Traditional Medicine in India

• India has a rich heritage of traditional medicine that includes Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, Sowa Rigpa, and Homeopathy.
• Practices
  • Ayurveda and Yoga are practised widely across the country.
  • The Siddha system is followed predominantly in Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
  • The Sowa-Rigpa system is practised mainly in Leh-Ladakh and Himalayan regions such as Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Darjeeling, Lahaul & Spiti.
• These systems have been integrated into the national healthcare system with institutionalised education and research councils.
• WHO describes traditional medicine as the total sum of the “knowledge, skills and practises indigenous and different cultures have used over time to maintain health and prevent, diagnose and treat physical and mental illness.

Related Efforts by WHO

• It has established the WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine in India to harness their potential through modern science and technology.
• WHO Collaborating Centre: In India, there are approximately 58 WHO Collaborating Centres spanning various disciplines of biomedicine and allied sciences.
  • The National Institute of Indian Medical Heritage (NIIMH), Hyderabad ranks as the third WHO Collaborating Centre in the domain of Traditional Medicine, following the Institute for Teaching & Research in Ayurveda, Jamnagar, and the Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga (MDNIY), New Delhi.

Efforts made by India

• India has established a separate Ministry of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homoeopathy) to promote holistic health and well-being.
  • It oversees the growth and development of traditional Indian medicines and Homoeopathy with the objective of making accessible, safe, effective, and quality medicines available to the public.
• Digital Initiatives and Portals
  • AMAR Portal: Catalogues Ayush manuscripts, with digitised content available.
  • SAHI Portal: Displays medico-historical artefacts.
  • e-Books of Ayush: Digital versions of classical textbooks.
  • NAMASTE Portal: Morbidity statistics from hospitals.
  • Ayush Research Portal: Indexes published Ayush research articles.
• Collections and Publications
  • Manuscripts and Library: Over 500 physical manuscripts, rare books from the 15th century AD.

Journal: Publishes the Journal of Indian Medical Heritage.