BELAGAVI: To bring traditional medicine practitioners to the frontline, the state government is planning to set up the Karnataka State Ayush University at Sogane village near Shivamogga. A bill was passed in this regard in the legislative council at the Suvarna Soudha on Wednesday.
Medical education minister Dr K Sudhakar said the Ayush university will throw light on ayurveda, yoga, naturopathy, unani, siddha, homeopathy and sowa rigpa (Tibetan medicine). It will be the first Ayush university in south India.
As there is a dedicated university (Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences) for medical education, there is no need for setting up another university, said JDS member Maritibbegowda, opposing another varsity.
Sudhakar said including 105 Ayush colleges, there are 953 colleges under the RGUHS and the workload on that varsity has increased. Hence, they are not able to focus more on Ayush medicine practitioners and its research and development.
To preserve, protest and practise traditional medicines and to conduct research on them, the World Health Organisation Congress passed the Beijing declaration on traditional medicine. As a result, Ayush universities have been set up by many states in north India and now Karnataka will also get such a varsity.
The minister also said the government will recruit a total of three doctors in all PHCs including two allopathy and one Ayush doctor.