CHENNAI: World Siddha Day was celebrated for the first time at the National Institute of Siddha at Tambaram Sanatorium on Tuesday. The Central Council of Indian Medicine had declared April 14, the first day of Chiththirai, as the World Siddha Day in 2009.
Speaking on the occasion, Tamil Nadu Governor Surjit Singh Barnala highlighted the virtues of the holistic field of medicine. He also unveiled a statute of Thirumoolar, a patron Siddhar, who had contributed a lot to this field of medicine.
V K Subburaj, principal secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare, stressed that the need of the hour was to focus more on the path of breaking research on Siddha.
As a part of the celebrations, an exhibition of herbal plants was inaugurated. Around 550 herbal plants and 120 endangered species were on display. A number of pharmaceutical companies such as KSM Siddha, IMPCOPS and other small-scale industries displayed their products.