New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Wednesday that India would soon start a separate visa category for those who come to the country for treatment in traditional or alternative medicine.
Modi was speaking at the inauguration of the Global AYUSH Investment and Innovation Summit at Gandhinagar in the presence of World Health Organisation Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Union AYUSH Minister Sarbananda Sonowal were also in attendance.
The prime minister said this was the first time an investment summit was being held for the AYUSH sector – a major government push for education and research in the field of alternative medicine. He said: “I thought of this at the time of the COVID-19 outbreak. AYUSH kada and other similar products helped people boost their immunity.”
Modi said that 14 start-ups this year had joined the unicorn club. “I am confident that unicorns would soon emerge from AYUSH start-ups,” he said.
On the sector’s market viability, the prime minister said it was “very important that farmers involved in growing medicinal plants should get the facility to easily connect with the market”. “For this, the government is also working on the modernisation and expansion of the AYUSH e-marketplace,” he said.
He informed the AYUSH sector had grown to USD 18 billion from USD USD 3 billion in 2014.
He also said the government would “make a special AYUSH mark”. This trade mark would be applied to the highest quality of Ayush products made in India, Modi said.
WHO DG Dr Ghebreyesus said he was “privileged to come to the land of Mahatma Gandhi”. He said: “The areas of focus — long term strategic investments and government commitment – are needed to support innovation and innovators to develop traditional medicine in a sustainable, environment sensitive and equitable manner”. “Bringing traditional medicine to the market must make sure that communities which gave this knowledge also benefit,” he added.
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said “Narendra Modi’s efforts have made a place in the world for yoga and now traditional medicine”. He said: “People across the world are moving towards traditional medicine. It’s now time to move towards preventive medicine.”
Mauritius PM Pravind Jugnauth called India a “pharmacy of the world”. He said: “We’re grateful to India for sending Ayurvedic medicines during the Covid pandemic. In Mauritius, the practice of AYUSH is popular and we have embraced the notion that traditional medicines compliment modern medicines.”
Also read: India risks power outages as high temperatures spike demand for coal