Ayush Ministry partners with WHO to promote traditional medicine
New Delhi: The Ministry of AYUSH is strengthening its collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) while contributing to the integration of traditional medicine into India's proposed regional medical hubs, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH Shri Prataprao Jadhav informed the Lok Sabha.
Replying to a question in Parliament, Jadhav said the Ministry has provided technical inputs to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) for incorporating Ayush systems into the regional medical hubs announced in the Union Budget 2026-27. The initiative, led by DPIIT, is being developed in consultation with multiple ministries to strengthen the country's healthcare ecosystem.
The Minister further stated that the Ministry is also working closely with the WHO to promote evidence-based traditional medicine through research, capacity building and international cooperation. A key component of this collaboration is the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre (GTMC) in Jamnagar, established under the Host Country Agreement between the Government of India and the WHO.
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Jadhav noted that India has played an active role in advancing the global traditional medicine agenda through international platforms. The first WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine, organised in Gandhinagar in 2023, resulted in the Gujarat Declaration. This was followed by the second summit held in New Delhi in 2025, which concluded with the Delhi Declaration and the announcement of SMART commitments to support implementation of the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025-2034, reports Indian Pharma Post.
According to the Minister, the Ministry has also contributed to the development of global research priorities, technical expert networks, traditional medicine data standards and the WHO Traditional Medicine Global Library. Work is also underway to develop the GTMC campus at Jamnagar as an international hub for research, innovation, training and global collaboration in traditional medicine.
In addition to international initiatives, the Ministry has expanded digital access to traditional medicine through several technology platforms developed by the Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS). These include the Ayur-Prakriti Web Portal, Swasthya Assessment Scale Portal, Admirable Personalities to Transform Ayurveda (APTA) Digital Library, and the Ayush Manuscripts Advanced Repository (AMAR), aimed at supporting research, documentation and wider accessibility of Ayush knowledge systems.
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