11th Ayurveda Day: Key Highlights

  • Celebrated by the Ministry of Ayush in Nagpur with the theme "Ayurveda for a Healthy Future".
  • Key releases during the celebrations:
  • Safety Dossiers on Gokshura (Tribulus terrestris) and Chandrashura (Lepidium sativum).
  • Standard Treatment Guidelines for dermatological disorders.
  • Report: "From Traditional Wisdom to Global Leadership: Ayush Vision 2030".

About Ayurveda and Ayurveda Day

  • Ayurveda is an ancient science of life (over 5,000 years old) with roots in the Rigveda; derived from Ayu (life) and Veda (knowledge).
  • Core aim: To maintain health in the healthy and treat illness in the diseased.
  • Principles: Health is defined as balance between:
  • Doshas (bio-energies)
  • Agni (metabolic fire)
  • Dhatus (body tissues)
  • Malas (waste elimination)
  • Harmony of body, mind and spirit
  • Classical texts: Charaka Samhita and Sushruta Samhita.
  • Ayurveda Day: Observed annually on 23 September to promote Ayurveda and enhance its global recognition.
  • The Ministry of Ayush notified a fixed date in March 2025 for a uniform calendar identity.
  • Earlier celebrated on Dhanvantari Jayanti (Dhanteras); the shift to 23 September (autumn equinox) reflects Ayurveda's principle of balance between mind, body and spirit.

Health Infrastructure for Ayurveda Integration

  • Budget Allocation: Union Budget 2026-27 allocated ₹4,408 crore to the Ministry of Ayush.
  • National Ayush Mission (NAM): Integrated with the National Health Mission (NHM); over ₹6,406.99 crore released between 2014-15 and 2025-26.
  • Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (Ayush): 12,260 functional centres as of September 2026, with a target of 12,500.
  • Public Health Integration: Ayush services co-located in 13,249 public health facilities (PHCs, CHCs, District Hospitals); support for 25,322 Ayush doctors and 5,666 Ayush paramedics.
  • Integrative Medicine: Departments established at VMMC & Safdarjung Hospital and Lady Hardinge Medical College, including Panchakarma facilities.
  • Telemedicine: Ayush OPD services via eSanjeevani (has served over 50 crore patients).
  • Insurance: IRDAI mandated insurers to cover all systems of medicine; AIIA entered common empanelment agreements for cashless Ayush treatment.

Educational Infrastructure

  • NAM supports establishment/upgradation of UG and PG Ayush institutions, pharmacy and paramedical programmes.
  • Union Budget 2026-27 announced three new All India Institutes of Ayurveda (AIIA).
  • 17 new Ayush colleges approved under NAM, of which 12 focus on Ayurveda.

Regulatory Standards

  • Ayurvedic medicines regulated under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Drugs Rules, 1945; compliance with GMP and pharmacopoeia standards.
  • e-Aushadhi Portal: Paperless, real-time tracking of drug manufacturing licence applications.
  • Ayurveda Aahara: FSSAI with Ministry of Ayush introduced standards for traditional Ayurvedic food products.
  • Budget 2026-27 proposed upgradation of Ayush pharmacies and Drug Testing Laboratories.

Research and Development Initiatives

  • AYURGYAN Scheme (2021-22): ₹17.79 crore across 34 projects; Ayurveda received ₹9.38 crore for 17 projects.
  • AYUR SWASTHYA Yojana (2021-2026): Supports clinical/drug research and Centres of Excellence; 22 of 25 projects included Ayurveda.
  • CCRAS: Autonomous body under Ministry of Ayush with a network of 30 national and regional institutes.
  • SPARK Programme: Studentship Programme for Ayurveda Research Ken; 289 Ayurveda colleges benefited (2022-23 to 2024-25).
  • AI Translation: CCRAS collaborated with Anuvadini AI (developed by AICTE) to translate research into 13 Indian languages.
  • Support for medicinal plant conservation, cultivation and processing.

International Partnerships and Global Recognition

  • 27 country-to-country MoUs, 16 MoUs for Ayush Academic Chairs, and 57 institute-to-institute MoUs.
  • Recent agreements (2025-26): Country-level MoUs with Angola, Kazakhstan, Tanzania; institute-level agreements with Ghana, South Africa, Réunion Island, Germany, Malaysia, Mongolia; Academic Chair MoU with Oman.
  • 46 Ayush Information Cells across 43 countries; 104 scholarships under the International Ayush Fellowship/Scholarship Programme.
  • WHO ICD-11 Module: Ayurveda, Siddha and Unani diagnoses included for standardised coding.
  • Second WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine (2025, New Delhi): 100+ countries, 22 health ministers; adopted the Delhi Declaration.
  • WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre at Jamnagar, Gujarat.
  • 11th International Day of Yoga (2025): ~2,000 events across 191 countries; Yoga sessions at World Expo 2025, Osaka.
  • BRICS: 16th BRICS Health Ministers' Meeting in Chandigarh established an Expert Working Group on Traditional, Complementary and Integrative Medicine.
  • Ayush Visa: M-3 for patients and M-4 for caregivers to promote medical value travel.

Conclusion

Ayurveda's evolution from a traditional knowledge system to an integrated healthcare component reflects India's approach of combining civilisational wisdom with modern scientific methods, through infrastructure expansion, digital healthcare, research, quality regulation and international cooperation.

PYQ Reference

  • Mains (2019): How is the Government of India protecting traditional knowledge of medicine from patenting by pharmaceutical companies?