Ayurveda is emerging as India’s soft power
As India organises the 9th World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo, which begins on December 8, this is our opportunity to showcase Ayurveda and what steps are being taken to enable it to reach its true potential. At this congregation, hundreds of health care professionals and experts in traditional medicinal practices from 53 countries will be participating to gain first-hand knowledge of Ayurveda.
Ayurveda and other traditional forms of well-being in India have received a tremendous boost since 2014 when Narendra Modi took over as Prime Minister (PM) of India. He made a conscious decision to enable one of the oldest medicine systems in the world, Ayurveda, for the benefit of humanity. The efforts made by the Modi government have enhanced the potential market for Indian Ayush products to reach $23 billion by 2023. However, it must be stressed that this is only the beginning of how much Ayurveda can contribute towards revamping the global health care system.
Today, many developed countries are facing constrictive population pyramids. This means the number of older people is increasingly outnumbering the younger population as the birth rate continues to fall. India, on the other hand, has a vast young population. Therefore, we must create employment opportunities and enable our young to become part of a sustainable solution to global problems. While yoga is improving people’s lives, Ayurveda is poised to provide the world with holistic health care solutions for the body and mind with the help of young people. They are ready to learn, train, practice and help the world achieve holistic health care, as envisioned by PM Modi.
To make Ayurveda effective, modern-day health issues and challenges must be factored in while formulating solutions. For example, we face the gravest health crisis today due to an increasingly sedentary lifestyle. As a result, diseases are becoming a significant cause of poorer quality of life and a worrying reason for the increasing loss of life. The government has outlined a model health care solution where the prevention of diseases and preservation of good health and cure act as the main pillars. The New Health Policy 2017 and the National Education Policy 2020 are reflections of PM Modi’s vision of building a nation, focusing on health care as a way of life.
The new approach is a holistic one where the focus is on preserving good health. This is to be achieved through evidence-based knowledge, the soft power of Indian civilisation via Ayurveda. Under the dynamic leadership of PM Modi, the global health objective has become “healthy, long and fulfilling life for all” from “health for all”. By practising Ayurveda, one can achieve good health through its curative techniques and medicines, which can boost resilience against diseases and ensure mental well-being. While the training of human resources is a fundamental requirement, Ayurveda must also incorporate the strength of modern medicinal practice. Many issues such as access to quality medicine and building necessary infrastructure are also important. These must be approached from both legal and practical points of view. It is important that the education, research, scientific investigation, and propagation of Ayurveda are done as per rational and scientific evaluation processes.
A step towards this end was achieved when it was announced that the Global Centre for Traditional Medicine (GCTM) of the World Health Organization will be set up in Gujarat. The GCTM, while focusing on collecting health information, undertaking research, and supporting regulation of traditional medicine among the United Nations member-States, will also focus on ensuring equitable benefits to knowledge bearers of traditional health systems. Other initiatives such as “Heal in India” and “Heal by India” bear testimony to India’s commitment to that responsibility. While “Heal in India” will bring the world to India to seek its expertise and knowledge in Ayurveda and yoga, “Heal by India” will enable Indian knowledge systems on health to cover the world with its experiential, evidence-based knowledge.
As India organises the 9th World Ayurveda Congress and Arogya Expo, which begins on December 8, this is our opportunity to showcase Ayurveda and what steps are being taken to enable it to reach its true potential. At this congregation, hundreds of health care professionals and experts in traditional medicinal practices from 53 countries will be participating to gain first-hand knowledge of Ayurveda.
PM Modi will address the valedictory session of this gala meet, which will be the single largest platform for all experts to learn from the best about the benefits of Ayurveda. This will not only create an enabling environment of learning and sharing for the significant benefit of people but will also be a testimony to the immense potential that Ayurveda holds as soft power, capable of building a holistic health care system.
Sarbananda Sonowal is the Union minister of Ayush and Ports, Shipping & Waterways The views expressed are personal