Guwahati: Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine in Jamnagar of Gujarat on 19 April 2022, where the groundbreaking ceremony was attended by Mauritius Premier Pravind Kumar Jugnauth and World Health Organization (WHO) director-general Tedros Ghebreyesus.
Identified as the world’s first and only global centre for traditional medicine, the project is initiated by Union
Ayush ministry and the WHO, whose primary objective will be harnessing the potential of traditional medicine from across the world through modern science & technology and improve overall health of the communities’ worldwide. The centre will highlight the potential of traditional medicine and utilize technological advancements to promote its safe and effective use.
Speaking on this occasion PM Modi stated that the WHO GCTM is recognition of India’s contribution and potential in this field. India’s traditional medicine system is not limited only to treatment. It is a holistic science of life. India takes this partnership as a huge responsibility for serving the entire humanity, he added.
Modi also mentioned that the world is now looking for a new dimension of health care delivery.
Attended by Gujarat chief minister Bhupendra Patel, Union Ayush minister Sarbananda Sonowal, health & family welfare minister Mansukh Mandaviya, etc, the ceremony also witnessed recorded video messages from PMs of Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan, where they acknowledged that the WHO GCTM is a major milestone for entire southeast Asian nations.
“Traditional medicines products abound globally and the centre will go a long way in bringing the promise of the traditional medicine to fruition. The centre will focus on data, innovation & sustainability and will optimize the use of traditional medicine,” said WHO director-general Tedros adding that through this global center India will be able to take its knowledge of traditional medicine to the world and similarly the world will come to India.
Addressing the audience, Sonowal commented that India has been proven pioneers in the field of traditional medicine since time immemorial. The knowledge sharing and cooperation has been documented in history and in continuation of the same, focused efforts have been relentlessly undertaken by the Ayush ministry. The establishment of the centre is an effort to bring synergy, he added.
As the traditional medicine is a key pillar of health care delivery systems and it can play a crucial role in maintaining good health and well-being of the human race, the centre will aim to integrate the benefits of traditional medicine with the achievements of modern science, said Sonowal adding that in recent years, traditional therapies have seen a major transformation as usage of artificial intelligence, technological innovations have made it more accessible to masses.
