The Ministry of Ayush, a ministry of the Government of India, is responsible for developing education, research and propagation of traditional medicine systems in India. Ayush is a name devised from the names of the alternative healthcare systems covered by the ministry: Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy. # iso certification in india

The Department of Indian Systems of Medicine and Homeopathy (ISM&H) was first established in 1995 under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. ISM&H was renamed as the Department of Ayurveda, Yoga and naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy or Department of AYUSH. The department was made into an official ministry by the Narendra Modi, Government of India in 2014.# iso certification in india

The ministry of Ayush has faced significant criticism for funding systems that lack biological plausibility and are either untested or conclusively proven as ineffective. Quality of research has been poor, and drugs have been launched without rigorous pharmacological studies and meaningful clinical trials on Ayurveda or other alternative healthcare systems. The ministry has been accused of promoting pseudoscience.

History

Emphasis on indigenous healthcare models

Successive Five-Year Plans of India (produced by the Planning Commission of India and later the NITI Aayog) allotted considerable focus to alternative, especially indigenous, forms of medicine within the healthcare sector. The Government of India set up a number of committees for healthcare sector development, including Bhore (1946), Mudaliar (1961), and Srivastava (1975), that emphasized the need for improvement of traditional systems of Indian medicine. The National Health Policy (1983), National Education Policy in Health Sciences (1989), and National Health Policy (2002) further elaborated on the role of the Indian System of Medicine (ISM) and Homeopathy (H) as a means to facilitate healthcare access in rural areas where many Indians lack adequate health services.# iso certification in india

Educational courses and ISM&H

A diploma course in Ayurveda was launched in the third (1961–1966) five-year plan. The Central Council of Indian Medicine was established in 1971.followed by Central Council of Homeopathy in 1973.^[11] The sixth (1980–1985) and seventh (1985–1990) five-year plans aimed at developing novel ISM&H drugs.^[9] The eighth (1992–1997) five-year plan lent considerable emphasis on the mainstreaming of Ayush.^{[citation needed]} The Department of Indian System of Medicine and Homeopathy was launched in March 1995, under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The ninth five-year plan (1998-2002) ensured for its integration with western medicine.^{[citation needed]} It was the first to tackle different aspects of the Ayush system in a standalone manner which focused on overall development including investment in human resource development, preservation and cultivation of medicinal plants, establish a more complete pharmacopoeia, and outline good manufacturing processes.^{[citation needed]} The acronym AYUSH was devised in 2003. The department of Indian System of Medicine and Homeopathy was renamed the department of AYUSH in November 2003.# iso certification in india

The National Rural Health Mission was launched in 2005 with the stated aim of integrating Ayush practitioners into national health programs, including in primary health care (Ayush medical officers at community health centers, para-professionals et al.) and to provide support for research in the field.^[13] The National Rural Health Mission listed the mainstreaming of Ayush as one of its priorities.# iso certification in india

After 2014

Observers noted an increased focus on Ayush healthcare after the 2014 Indian general elections, which brought the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to power. On 9 November 2014 the previous government department for traditional Indian medicine was elevated by the administration of Narendra Modi into a standing ministry that includes the promotion of yoga practice and the use of Ayurvedic products. # iso certification in india