CCRAS Hosts National Meet on Traditional Medicine with Dabur and Shri Krishna Ayush University

The Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS), an organization under the Ministry of Ayush, held a national consultative meet in New Delhi on June 24, 2024. The event aimed to align traditional medicine research with global standards and priorities.

Key Announcements

During the meet, CCRAS signed two Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with Shri Krishna Ayush University, Kurukshetra, and Dabur, a leading Ayurvedic company in India. Additionally, CCRAS launched its new and updated website.

Objectives and Goals

The meet brought together representatives from various domains of Traditional Medicine (TM) in India, including policymakers, academic institutions, researchers, patients, and industry stakeholders. The goal was to identify and prioritize key research areas across Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, and Homeopathy.

Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary of the Ministry of Ayush, stated, “The objective is to ensure effective utilization of funds and address critical areas of need within traditional medicine, including medicinal plant research, quality, safety, and efficacy studies, pre-clinical validations, rational use of traditional medicines, clinical trial monitoring, medical anthropology, and the digitalization of ancient medical literature.”

Future Roadmap

Professor (Vaidya) Rabinarayan Acharya, Director General of CCRAS, emphasized the importance of the MoUs, stating, “We wanted to chart a research roadmap for the next decade and align efforts with WHO guidelines. These two MoUs with Dabur and Shri Krishna Ayush University are a healthy start in this direction.”

Prof. Kartar Singh Dhiman, Vice Chancellor of Shri Krishna Ayush University, highlighted the significance of the MoU, which will foster academic and research collaborations, providing opportunities for researchers and scientists to exchange ideas through workshops and seminars.

Stakeholder Participation

The event saw participation from around 150 stakeholders, including representatives from the Ministry of Ayush, NITI Aayog, research councils, universities, national institutes, WHO-SEARO, WHO-GTMC, policymakers, pharmacy representatives, and media persons. Round table discussions and plenary sessions helped shape the prioritization exercise and the way forward.

Dr. G P Prasad, Assistant Director of the National Institute of Indian Medical Heritage (NIIMH), pointed out that prioritization fosters the preservation and documentation of traditional knowledge, protecting cultural heritage and biodiversity associated with medicinal plants and indigenous healing practices.