India needs to promote Ayurveda to win the world market for natural remedies: Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH

Sep 01, 2020

NEW DELHI, 1 September 2020:  Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH, GoI, today said that, with a proper regulatory system, India stands to gain enormously as a producer of traditional ayurvedic goods in the global market.

Addressing  a webinar 'Manufacturing Excellence in AYUSH' organized by FICCI, Vaidya Kotecha said that the world's growing fascination towards Ayurveda, traditional and alternative medicine is a huge opportunity for Indian manufacturers to dominate the market. Amid challenges posed due to the Coronavirus pandemic, India can become a manufacturing hub for the world market through Ayurveda.

 This opportunity can provide a substantial source of income for farmers and companies across the country, he said.

Vaidya Kotecha emphasized on the need for a behavioural change in people towards immunity-enhancing steps and highlighted the evidence that has established the positive role of traditional medicines and practices in enhancing immunity.

Speaking on the strength of AYUSH in mitigating the effects of COVID, Vaidya Kotecha said, "We collaborated with the Delhi Police and other front line warriors, where we provided an Ayuraksha Kit and observed that the incidence of COVID came down to four times in the span of two months with a mortality rate of 0.47."

He further stated that for an efficient supply chain management in the plantation of medicinal plants, the Ministry is ready to launch Mission Vrikshayush and a 4000-crore scheme of herbal cultivation has been shared in the cabinet.

Speaking on Govt's perspective on manufacturing excellence Vaidya Kotecha pointed out that the Ministry of AYUSH and MSME Ministry has signed an MoU to give impetus to the Ayush sector where all schemes of the MSME industry will be applicable for the Ayush sector. 

He further mentioned that the Govt is working with FSSAI to create a separate category of Ayurvedic Ahaar and working towards launching a portal for drug regulation.

Dr Manoj Nesari, Adviser, Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India & Adviser, FICCI AYUSH Committee, said, as a part of the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, there is a tremendous scope in manufacturing and cultivation of medicinal plants for the herbal sector. The herbal market has tremendous growth potential and it is expected to grow by 129 thousand million by 2023. He further expressed that quality is critical for global market registration and that there is a need to develop herbal monographs that will provide a boost to the industry and facilitate export.

Mr Shyam Bang, Chair, FICCI Manufacturing Excellence Taskforce, Chairman, NABCB, Quality Council of India and Director at Jubilant Life Sciences Ltd, said, to be competitive in the global market, the industry must take steps that will lead to global excellence.

"To achieve excellence, the management concepts must be changed to define parameters of excellence. The processes industry must adopt are innovation, quality system, supply chain, visual management and orderliness, these processes will yield productivity, cost, and morale," he said.

Mr Arvind Varchaswi, MD, Sri Sri Tattva & Co-Chair, FICCI, AYUSH Committee, said manufacturing excellence under the AYUSH Industry has gone through a transformation with immense support from the government. Manufacturing practices have been the highlights of the Sector and the industry is working together to ensure the best practices in this industry, he said.

Dr Sulaiman CT, Senior Scientist & Head, Phytochemistry Division, Centre for Medicinal Plants Research (CMPR), Arya Vaidya Sala Kottakkal, said that an important issue that Ayurvedic industry faces today is the non-availability of genuine herbs in required quantities leading to adulteration and unauthorized institution that affects the quality of medicines adversely. He further mentioned that despite the efforts taken by the authorities to promote the cultivation of medicinal plants, the problem of raw material scarcity leading to adulteration remains a concern to the industry.

Mr Rajinder Singh, Managing Director & Chief Mentor, EFESO Consulting, India Operations said, two most important competencies for any organization to thrive and grow is to sustain and improve. The focus should be on complete wellness and not just the elimination of the diseases.

Dr Sanjeev Asgekar, Vice President, Corporate Quality Assurance, CIPLA Ltd., said the quality of an organization is a shared responsibility between IPD, manufacturing, supply chain, HR, and Finance. He further said man, machine, material, method, and measurement form the core of quality management.

Other eminent personalities like Vaidya Anurag Gupta, Baidyanath Ayurved Bhawan, Vaidya R.V. Gudi, Manager (Production), Shree Dhootapapeshwar Ltd also attended the webinar.