KOCHI: The delegates of Global Ayurveda Summit, which began here on Wednesday, called for exploiting the opportunities of medical tourism to the fullest and termed it as the way forward for Kerala Tourism. “Medical tourism opens up a slew of opportunities for Kerala. It is not just limited to treatment, but medical tourism as well. Many students are going out to pursue higher education in Ayurveda and related disciplines. Now, we have to transform our state into a destination for diaspora students to study our indigenous medical systems,” said S Sajikumar, managing director, Dhathri Ayurveda Pvt Ltd.
According to delegates, the extensive promotion for medical tourism might also solve the employment issues of new graduates as well. “We have approximately 8 lakh registered medical practitioners of all Ayush medical systems in the state. Out of which 4 lakh are from Ayurveda. Annually, almost 25,000 students are coming out from our educational institutions and the new ventures can address the job creation issue. By utilising the various Ayush schemes, medical tourism projects can easily address the problem,” said A Raghu, joint advisor (Ayurveda), Ministry of Ayush.
Besides, Ayush Department is planning to promulgate a scheme titled ‘Champion sector in services’ by giving special focus on medical tourism. The Tourism Department officials are also upbeat about the newly-found interest in the sector. “Ayurveda and backwaters are the two major USPs of Kerala tourism. Unlike the emerging markets like Sri Lanka, we have authenticity while providing medical tourism-related services. But we are yet to explore our potential to the fullest,” said Raj Kumar K P, deputy director, Kerala Tourism.
champion in tourism
Ayush Department is planning to promulgate a scheme titled ‘Champion sector in services’ by giving special focus on medical tourism. The Tourism Department officials are also upbeat about the newly-found interest in the sector