The Ayurveda, homoeopathy, naturopathy, siddha, unani, and yoga (AYUSH) controversy linked to COVID-19 continues, with accusations that the Ministry of AYUSH is promulgating alternative medicine therapies with no basis in scientific facts. The AYUSH controversy has been a fixture in some respects during this pandemic. As early as January, commentators ridiculed the AYUSH Ministry for […]
homoeopathy
Arsenicum Album 30 for COVID-19 embraced in Gujarat?
Reports indicate that homoeopathic treatments such as Arsenicum Album 30 for COVID-19 are being dispensed in significant numbers by the state government in Gujarat. The Wire reports that the Gujarat state health department informed the World Health Organization (WHO) on August 20th that it had disseminated the homoeopathic treatment Arsenicum Album 30 as a prophylactic […]
Ayurveda in Kerala’s fight against COVID
The Kerala state government is reportedly to use Ayurveda in the fight against COVID-19. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan seemed to confirm as much earlier this week, stating “we have decided to use Ayurveda in mitigating the spread of COVID-19. People would be classified into seven categories based on the possible spread of the virus, and […]
AYUSH practitioners: Modi reaches out
Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reached out to Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) practitioners to participate in efforts to tackle the disease – while also cautioning against promoting unproven cures. Modi interacted with AYUSH practitioners via videoconferencing over the weekend and suggested that they could benefit the […]
Homoeopathy: Telengana’s answer to COVID-19
The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has the world in the grip of panic. This has resulted in people the globe over taking precautionary measures ranging from handwashing to the wearing of face masks to even foregoing forms of physical contact such as hugging and shaking hands. Reasonable precautions such as these have been taken up […]
Homoeopathy to treat coronavirus? AYUSH Ministry interjects
The Union Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) has spoken out about the coronavirus outbreak, suggesting that homoeopathic and unani remedies could be effective in preventing the disease. The Ministry advised that symptoms of coronavirus could be managed utilising traditional Indian medicine. “At the instance of Ministry of AYUSH, Central […]
Homoeopathy bill: Amendments approved by Cabinet
The Union Cabinet has approved amendments to a homoeopathy bill, which itself will amend a decades-old piece of legislation creating a homoeopathic council analogous to the Medical Council of India to regulate the practice in India. Systems of alternative and traditional medicine, such as homoeopathy, have been gaining popularity in India in recent years and […]
First AYUSH hospital to open its doors in Punjab
Punjab will become home to its first AYUSH hospital, which will open its doors in the state’s Mohali district. AYUSH refers an umbrella of alternative and traditional systems of medicine including Ayurveda, yoga, naturopathy, unani, siddha, and homoeopathy. The inauguration of the AYUSH hospital took place in Zirakpur on November 14th, the foundational stone being […]
AYUSH services for every home
The Centre has been keen to emphasise alternative and traditional systems of medicine. Minister of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) Shripad Yasso Naik has repeatedly expressed enthusiasm for this push, advocating for AYUSH services for every home in India. “I can say today that people are getting more and more interested […]
Traditional Chinese medicine: Regulation a must
Earlier this year, the World Health Organization (WHO) included a chapter on traditional medicine in its International Classification of Diseases (ICD) for the first time – in what many perceived to be a boon to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). The ICD is an influential document. In the WHO’s own words, “ICD is increasingly used in […]