Kashayam Is More Bitter

Now the flip side. For all the apparent boost, the new ministry바카라�s media machines have failed to evoke sufficient public awareness and confidence in ayurvedic treatment to get people to use the services of its clinics in cities and villages. Notwithstanding its millennia-old history of healing, this 바카라�way of life바카라� remains the second or last alternative to allopathic treatment for most Indians. Why has the system that uses natural resources failed to satisfy even those who would rather not opt for allopathic treatment?

To a large extent, the blame goes to a lack of focused administrative atte­ntion and non-existence of an enabling policy environment and the absence of scientific standardisation of the medicines. Health being a state subject, the Centre only makes overarching guidelines. It is for the states to implement them. The Drug and Cosmetics Act has a provision for ayurvedic medicine. But the herbal drugs and bhasmas produced under the science are specific to different states. This often results in drugs without proof of efficacy. 바카라�We have no fixed standard for trial of ayurvedic drugs,바카라� says an ex-official of the ministry. 바카라�Drug firms may show trial data on just a handful of pat­ients and are still eligible to get a lic­ence for mass production.바카라�

This, when the Indian ayurvedic drug market is estimated to be growing at a compound rate of 16 per cent every year. Yet, there is almost no regulation on adv­ertising of ayurvedic products. Result: consumers are often duped into believing exaggerated claims of cure. A recent example is BGR-34, a blood-glucose regulator, jointly developed by CSIR-NBRI and CSIR-CIMAP. The drug went into mass production and has been a runaway hit. A lawyer, Manu Govind, has challe­nged the manufacturers in the Kerala High Court, alleging the claims weren바카라�t backed by technical or clinical data.

Dr Anand Srinivasan, chairman of the Delhi-based Maharishi Ayurveda Hosp­ital, says most manufacturing units for such drugs are substandard. 바카라�India has more than three lakh manufacturing plants for ayurvedic drugs. Only 20-30 of them produce drugs that might meet requ­ired standards,바카라� he says. 바카라�Most others are one-room set-ups.바카라�

This is one of the major reasons that leave patients ineligible for insurance cover when it comes to ayurvedic treatments바카라�even from reputed hospitals. 바카라�No standards for cost of procedure is available,바카라� says a medical insurer. 바카라�Most of such treatments can easily fall under 바카라�experimental바카라� category.바카라�

Since herbs are their components, ayurveda drugs have been deprived of recognition from the US Food and Drug Authority or other international bodies. This, however, can be 바카라�easily rectified바카라� by changing the guidelines for drug trials, according to the former Ayush official. 바카라�We need to develop a format of standardisation that follows the rules of ayurveda instead of that of allopathy. By using traditional knowledge and presenting it in international forums, we can seek acc­reditation for mass distribution of such drugs in a more organised manner.바카라�

The onus for research and development of new ayurvedic drugs, too, lies almost solely in the hands of the government. The Central Council for Research in Ayur­vedic Sciences (CCRAS) under Ayush is responsible for the development of drugs and creating a nuanced understanding of ayurveda principles. Dr Neera Vyas, deputy D-G of the 1978-formed CCRAS, rues laxity in promoting rese­arch since the new ministry was formed by upgrading a 1995-constituted Department of Indian Systems of Medicine and Homeopathy, which was renamed Ayush in 2003. 바카라�There still don바카라�t exist guidelines for the testing and development of drugs under the ministry,바카라� she says.

Another CCRAS official says most trials undertaken in the organisation do not last more than three months, and often do not conclude anything new or ground-breaking. 바카라�Our research into ayurveda is not improving upon the exis­ting principles in texts,바카라� he states. 바카라�Several western countries are doing better work in understanding the basics.바카라�

Three years ago, the Narendra Modi administration floated a mission to create a data-bank of information on ayur­vedic treatments and compositions of medicines, many of which are now lost or not available in full. The country has 350 ayurveda colleges recognised by the Cen­tral Council for Indian Medicine (CCIM). Most students opt to study ayurveda only as a second option바카라�after MBBS. On completion of the ayurveda degree, many graduates practise allopathic medicine바카라�something allowed in states like Maha­rashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. Some study further and become nurses in hospitals.

The total number of seats available for bachelors in ayurveda in the country stands at around 17,000바카라�a number growing every year, as more colleges are accredited. Yet, admission trends suggest that about one-sixth of these seats rem­ain vacant. The syllabus excludes practical knowledge; there바카라�s no mention of the ways of making the herbal potions. What바카라�s more, the courses have an overarching influence of allopathy.

Points out Kerala-based Dr M.S. Valia­than, a renowned cardiologist who took to ayurveda recently: 바카라�Mixing our traditional teaching with allopathy only sull­ies the sciences, giving students half-baked knowledge about ayurveda.바카라� Ravi P.V. is pursuing a course in an 바카라�alternative medicine바카라� in Tamil Nadu, having failed to get through to a medical college. Does this ayurveda student in Coimba­tore wish to set up his own practice subsequently? Ravi shrugs and says, 바카라�I think I바카라�ll do a small course in nursing after this so that I can get a job in a hospital.바카라�

Vineetha Muralikumar, president of the CCIM which is the ayurvedic counterpart of the Medical Council of India and is responsible for vetting colleges as well as registration of ayurvedic doctors in the country, says a mix of traditional medicine and allopathy has become 바카라�important바카라�. 바카라�The government needs to ensure that the ayurvedic practitioners have at least basic knowledge of allopathy.바카라� According to her, low availability of doctors in rural Maharashtra and UP is leading many ayurveda practitioners to treat patients with allopathic medicines.

Vinod Kumar, an ayurvedic doctor from Kerala, says the syllabus in ayurveda colleges is stale. 바카라�It deprives stude­nts of knowledge about new discoveries.  There must be constant updating,바카라� he says.

Ayurveda laureate Padmaja Ramachan­dran, also from the same southern state, regrets a decline in the number of books taught in ayurveda courses. 바카라�When I was a student a few decades ago, we had to learn every shloka in the Ashtanga Hrid­ayam, which is the most crucial text for ayurveda. We also had supplementary reading material, which is not present anymore,바카라� she says. The result: an inevitable decline in the quality of present-­generation doctors from colleges.

The Ayush ministry rules prescribe that INS­titutes comply with certain requi­rements, be it with the teaching staff or with beds in the attached hospital and its patient inflow. The biggest problem, to some, is a dearth of quality teachers. 바카라�Over the past few years, duplication of teachers has been a major issue,바카라� says Dr Vineetha. 바카라�Several teachers have registered themselves in different states, showing an exaggerated number of staff available in states as well as colleges.바카라� This means that many of the colleges are fudging the strength of its teaching faculty to get accreditation. Efforts are on to rectify the situation by issuing identity numbers to teachers, says Dr Vineetha. But the process is long drawn.

Sadly, the national health programme policy released by the government does not mention ayurveda. The Trauma Centre under Delhi바카라�s All India Institute of Medical Sciences, taking a leaf from global counterparts, has now joined hands with the Defence and Research Development Organisation to test the efficacy of herbal products in treating wounds. A small but significant step.