GUWAHATI Ayush Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Friday advised the northeastern States to unlock the “huge potential” for employment in the Ayush sector by exploring the rich flora of the Himalayan region.
Addressing the regional review meeting on the National Ayush Mission in Guwahati, he also called for an integrated Ayush medicine department in each leading State hospital across the northeast.
The meeting was inaugurated by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma along with Mr. Sonowal.
“Along with the rest of the world, the importance and popularity of traditional system of medicine has risen significantly in the northeast,” Mr. Sonowal said, lauding the eight States in the region for propagating the Ayush system of medicine.
He said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India had made significant progress in reinventing the age-old and proven benefits of the traditional system of medicine to enrich the quality of lives of the people.
“Invest, innovate, and integrate traditional medicine with modern medicine to develop a holistic line of healthcare solutions aimed at enriching the quality of life,” Mr. Sonowal urged the northeastern States.
The Health Ministers agreed to his suggestions for an integrated Ayush medicinal department at the major hospitals and exploring the Himalayan flora to create more jobs in the Ayush sector.
Wellness centres
Mr. Sonowal said the Prime Minister had approved the operationalisation of 12,500 Ayush Health and Wellness Centres through the State governments as a component of the Centrally sponsored scheme of the National Ayush Mission (NAM) in a phased manner by 2023-24.
“The main objectives are to establish a holistic wellness model based on Ayush principles and practices, to empower masses for self-care to reduce the disease burden, out of pocket expenditure and to provide informed choice to the needy public,” he said.
He said the Ministry of Ayush released ₹449.64 crore to the northeastern States under NAM from 2014-15 to 2022-23. The Ministry also supported 33 integrated Ayush hospitals in the region during the period, out of which nine had started operating, he added.
Arunachal Pradesh Health Minister Alo Libang said the State government would soon set up the Directorate of Ayush Health Services. His Manipur counterpart Sapam Ranjan Singh said a Special Panchakarma Centre had been proposed in the middle of the Loktak Lake.
Mizoram Health Minister R. Lalthangliana said the State government had been popularising the Ayush system of medicine through the Ayush Gram initiative and Jan Arogya Samiti.
