Lok Sabha Question No. 753 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-07-23
Subject: Ayush Treatment against COVID-19
Ministry: AYURVEDA,YOGA & NATUROPATHY,UNANI,SIDDHA AND HOMEOPATHY (AYUSH)
Asked by: Pradeep Kumar Singh

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AYURVEDA, YOGA & NATUROPATHY, UNANI, SIDDHA AND HOMOEOPATHY (AYUSH)

LOK SABHA UNSTARRED  QUESTION NO. 753 TO BE ANSWERED ON 23 RD JULY , 2021

## AYUSH TREATMENT AGAI NST COVID - 19

## 753. SHRI PRADEEP KUMAR SINGH:

Will the Minister of AYUSH be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has strategically dealt COVID - 19 crisis in the country for the last 15 months;
- (b) whether the Government has adopted Ayurvedic, Homeopathy, Unaniand other Ayurveda line of treatment to fight against COVID - 19;
- (c) if so, the number of Ayurvedic and Homeopathy Covid centres set up in the country to fight against the said pandemic, State - wise;
- (d) the number of COVID - 19 patients treated at these ce ntres along with the funds spent in this regard, State - wise; and
- (e) the estimated recovery rate for COVID - 19 patients treated with these methods?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE OF THE MINISTRY OF AYURVEDA, YOGA & NATUROPATHY, UNANI, SIDDHA AND HOMOEOPATHY (DR. MUNJPARA MAHEND RABHAI)

- (a) & (b): Yes. The Ministry of Ayush has taken several public health initiatives to pr the  spread  of  COVID - 19  in  the  country  in  the  last  15  months;  the  details  of  which  ar at Annexure - I.
- (c) to (e): The details of AYUSH Centres including Ayurvedic and Homeopathic Centres treating COVID patients and estimated recovery rate are given at Annexure - II. The funds spent at the centres are part of overall expenditure incurred at t he centre. However, as per the requests received from State/UT Governments, an amount of Rs. 2271.551 lakh has been approved b Ministry of Ayush under National AYUSH Mission (NAM) for purchase of medicines including AYUSH - 64 Medicine in the context of COV ID-19 pandemic, till date.

## Public health initiatives taken by the Ministry of Ayush to prevent the spread COVID - 19

1. Ministry  of  Ayush issued  an  advisory  on  protecting  yourself  from  COVID  and staying healthy. In the advisory, in addition to maintaining hygiene like hand wash, use etc. simple home remedies were also suggested for people.
2. A letter to all Chief Secretaries of State s / Union territories was sent from the Ministry with more specific suggestions on augmentation of General Immunity of people and possi Ayush intervention wherever required in coordination with Health departments of the Sta UTs.
3. A letter was sent to the Ministry of Health & Family welfare offering to integrate a utilize huge Ayush infrastructure to combat the COVID - 19 pandemic.
4. Ministry  has  sent  a  D.O.  letter  to  Principals  of  all  Ayurveda,  Siddha,  Unani Homoeopathy  (ASU& H)  colleges    (approximately  727  colleges)  for  utilization  of  availa infrastructure facilities like Hospital (IPD & OPD), pathology laboratory, ICU and manp including medical & Paramedical Staff to combat with the COVID19 pandemic. Therefore, the were requested to offer their services to local health authorities for utilization of facilities by them as per the situation arises. Accordingly, the various Ayush institut were  utilized  by  State  Governments  and  designated  as  Quaran tine  Centre,  Isolation  Centre, COVID Care Centre and COVID Health Centre.
5. A  D.O.  Letter  from  Secretary,  Ayush  was  sent  to  Secretary  DHR  &  DG  ICMR  to initiate research for AYUSH leads to deal with Corona Pandemic.
6. The Ministry uses video conferencing and social media platforms to reach out to Ayush practitioners and involve them in stopping and discouraging false and unsupported claims.
7. Ministry of Ayush recommends self - care guidelines for preventive health measures and boosting immunity with special ref erence to respiratory health.
8. ■ General Measures
9. ■ Ayurvedic Immunity Promoting Measures
10. ■ Simple Ayurvedic Procedures
11. ■ During dry cough/sore throat
8. Ministry  of  Ayush  and  MoHFW  have  jointly  provided  training  to  33,000  AYUSH master trainers. Total 66045 AYUS H Personnel had obtained training at igot.in platform on a continual  basis.  Ministry  of  Ayush  has  coordinated  with  MoHFW  for  utilisation  of  Ay manpower as COVID warrior to manage COVID -19 with identified roles.

9. Ministry of Ayush has formed an Interdisciplinary AYUSH  R&D Task Force chaired by Prof. Bhushan Patwardhan and having representation from scientists including ICMR, DB CSIR,  AIIMS  and  AYUSH  Institutions.    The  Interdisciplinary  AYUSH  Research  and Development Task Force h as formulated and  designed clinical research  protocols for prophylactic studies and add - on interventions in COVID - 19 positive cases through a thorough review and consultative process of high repute experts from different organizations acr country fo r studying four different interventions viz. Ashwagandha, Yashtimadhu, Guduchi Pippali and a  polyherbal formulation (AYUSH - 64).

10. Ministry of Ayush issued Gazette notification for undertaking research on COVID - 19 through Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Homeopathy Systems including prophylactic measures, intervention during the quarantine, asymptomatic and symptomatic cases of COVID - 19, Public Health Research, Survey, Lab - Based Research, etc. to generate evidence.

Ministry  of  Ayush  has  also  launche d  interdisciplinary  studies  involving  AYUSH interventions  for  COVID - 19  based  on  Taskforce  recommendations.  Under  various  research organizations  and  National  Institutes  under  the  Ministry  of  Ayush,  126  research  stud approx. 152 centres in the country have been initiated on AYUSH interventions. Ministry of Ayush has also taken initiatives to conduct clinical studies on Ayurvedic medicine with c like the USA, Brazil, South Africa, Ghana, UK, Germany, etc.

11. Director Generals of Research Counc ils and Directors of National Institutes with thei team of experts have prepared Guidelines for Registered Practitioners of respective sys AYUSH and the same is vetted by the Inter - disciplinary AYUSH Research and Development Taskforce of Ministry of Ayush. These guidelines are made available in the public domain to benefit registered AYUSH practitioners including Homoeopathy to help in the management COVID - 19 pandemic uniformly.

12. In order to make the process of product approval/licensing cons istent at State/UT level for effective quality control of Ayurvedic, Siddha, Unani and Homeopathic medicines under clinical  trials/research  studies  for  COVID - 19,  Ministry  directed  to  all  State/UT  Licensing Authorities to forward license application of such formulations with details and results of the clinical trial/research study for verification by the Central Government in the Ministry and also directed that all State/UT Licensing Authorities shall grant the approval or l manufacturefor sale of any such formulation only after obtaining clearance from the Ce Government.

13. The Ministry of Ayush launched a three -month campaign on 'Ayush for Immunity', through  webinar  and  publishing  a  campaign  bulletin  on  Ayush  for  Immunity.  Mor e  than  50 thousand people participated in the Webinar.

14. Government of India has released 'National Clinical Management Protocol based on Ayurveda and Yoga for management of COVID19' prepared by the National Taskforce with consensus from various exper t committees.

15. Ministry of Ayush has also released Ayurveda, Unani and Siddha preventive measure for self - care during COVID - 19 and Guidelines for AYUSH Practitioners for COVID - 19 Patients in Home Isolation.

16. Ministry  of  Ayush  has  also  issued  an advisory  for  Ayush  practitioners  on  ethical practices during COVID -19 pandemic.

17. Ministry of Ayush vide its D.O. letter No. Y - 18020/2/2020 -EP - III  has  requested all States/UTs to issue appropriate instructions to District Authorities urgently to invo lve Dis rict Ayurveda Officers in the management and mitigation of COVID - 19 in the districts and utilize the services of Ayush doctors, AYUSH healthcare providers and AYUSH health care facilit extensively  so  that  the  shortage  of  manpower  and  infrastruct ure  for  the  management  of COVID - 19 can be duly addressed.

18. States/ UTs licensing authorities / Drug Controllers has been informed to allow the l manufactures for AYUSH - 64 under their jurisdiction to include a new indication of AYUSH - 64 for  repurposing  as  an  intervention  for  the  management  of  asymptomatic,  mild  to  moder COVID - 19 in addition to existing indication (s). Further, States/ UTs Licensing Authorit been  requested  to  expedite  the  process  of  the  licensing/  approval  o f  the  application  for  the manufacturing of AYUSH - 64.

19. Ministry of Ayush vide D.O letter no.S - 16030/13/3030 - NAM  has  also  requested  the States/UTs  Governments  to  popularise  the  use  of  Kabasura  Kudineer  and  AYUSH - 64 in  the asymptomatic, mild to moderate COVID - 19 patients at isolation centres/ COVID Care Centre / COVID Health Centre, AYUSH hospitals/ dispensaries  and patients in home isolation.

20. In  order  to  provide  maximum  benefit  of  Ayush  systems  of  medicine,  a  Nation - wide campaign was launched for distribution of AYUSH - 64 and Kabasura Kudineer through Research Councils and National Institutes under Ministry of Ayush across the country.

21. For  continuing  with  the  efforts  to  augment  human  resources  for  the  management COVID - 19 cases, the Ministry of Ayush has issued an advisory to deploy the trained AYUSH human resources available with them for clinical management of COVID -19 cases.

22. Ministry of AYUSH has released Home care guidelines for children and Advisory fo AYUSH Practitioners about pr ophylactic care in Children during the COVID - 19 Pandemic.

23. To strengthen the community - wide effort to limit the spread of COVID - 19, Ministry of Ayush has  also  operationalized  a  dedicated  community  support  helpline  i.e.  toll - free  number 14443,      to  provide  AYUSH - based  approaches  and  solutions  for  the  challenges  raised  by COVID - 19.

24. Ministry of Ayush has launched of Ayush Clinical Case Repository ( ACCR) portal and the third version of Ayush Sanjivani App. The Ayush Clinical Case Repository (ACCR) por ( https://accr.ayush.gov.in/) will serve as a platform to support both AYUSH practitioners and th general public..

The  details  of  AYUSH  Centres  including  Ayurvedic  and  Homeopathic  Centres  treating COVID patients and estimated recovery rate are as follows -

## 1. All India Institutes of Ayurveda (AIIA), New Delhi

COVID Health Centre was established at All India Institutes of Ayurveda, New Delhi on 18.06.2020 to treat mild to moderate cases of COVID - 19. Till date 592 COVID patients were admitted in the CHC ward. 99.84% of patients were cured without any complications.

## 2. National Institute of Ayurveda (NIA), Jaipur

Covid  Care  Centre  was  established  at  Hospital  NIA  Jaipur  in  collaboration  wi Rajasthan Govt. The medicines, Ayush 64 tablets to 13198 persons, Immunity kit compris Chyavanprash,  Ayushkashaya,  Jvarahar  Capsule  to  19000  persons  &  Guduchi  Ghana  Vati  to 2500  per sons  were  distributed  by  NIA,  Jaipur.  Total  no.  of  98  patients  treated  with protocol in NIA COVID Care Centre.  Further, Ayush - 64  has been provided to 3000 COVID positive patients.

## 3. Institute of Teaching & Research in Ayurveda (ITRA), Jamnagar

Total of 938 patients admitted at Covid Care Centre of ITRA hospital.

## 4. National Institute of Siddha, Chennai

Siddha Covid Care Centre at NIS has treated 5000 patients. Further, in 2020, the Covid Centre managed by NIS at SRM Medical College treated 40 0 covid cases.

## 5. North Eastern Institute of Folk Medicine (NEIFM), Pasighat.

Distributions of AYUSH - 64 to home - isolated asymptomatic, mild and moderate Covid -19 patients were given. 270 patients were administered with AYUSH - 64 till date.

State/UT wise details regarding the number of Ayurvedic and Homoeopathy COVID centers set up, the number of patients treated, the percentage of recovery rate for COVID - 19 patients treated

of for

these

| Name of the State/ UT   | No. of Ayurvedic Homoeopathy Covi d centers set up State/UT                                                                                                     | and in No. of COVID-19 patients in these centers                                                                                                                                                                                                                          | The percentage recovery rate COVID -19 patients treated with methods                                                                 |
|-------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| 1.Haryana               | 11 Ayurvedic Covid centres                                                                                                                                      | 5105                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      | 93.16% recovered 6.84% referred/ out                                                                                                 |
| 2.Manipur               | One integrated AYUSH hospital & dedicated Covid Care centre                                                                                                     | 80                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        | 72.72%                                                                                                                               |
| 3.Mizoram               | 01                                                                                                                                                              | 127                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       | 100%                                                                                                                                 |
| 4.Tamil Nadu            | 05                                                                                                                                                              | 2300                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      | 100 %                                                                                                                                |
| 5.Telangana             | 01                                                                                                                                                              | 476                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       | 95 %                                                                                                                                 |
| 6.Gujarat               | In Gujarat since May 2020 more than 44 CCC and more than 21 DCHC/DCH allowed add-on AYUSH intervention to COVID - 19 Mild to Moderate cases with their consent. | 33,129                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    | As AYUSH intervention was given along with on Standard Treatment so exclusive recovery rate for AYUSH intervention could be analyzed |
| 7.Karnataka             | 01                                                                                                                                                              | 87                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        | 90 %                                                                                                                                 |
| 8.Kerala                | 1206                                                                                                                                                            | 337945 (These patients are treated through 1206 designated covid treatment centres named as AYUR RAKSHA clinics. AYUR RAKSHA clinics established at all Ayurveda Hospitals /Dispensaries and given OP level treatment for A category covid patients (Asymptomatic /mild). | 99.96 %                                                                                                                              |
| 9.Puducherry            | 01                                                                                                                                                              | 02                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        | 80%                                                                                                                                  |

Note- State/UT  Governments  of  Chhattisgarh,  Punjab,  Rajasthan,  J&K,  Daman  &  Diu,  Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Arunanchal Pradesh, Nagaland and Goa have furnished nil information.