BHUBANESWAR: Rajya Sabha MP and national spokesperson of the BJD Sasmit Patra on Wednesday met Union minister of state for AYUSH Prataprao Jadhav at New Delhi seeking establishment of an All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) in Mayurbhanj.
Patra pointed out that Odisha does not have any premier national Ayurveda institution despite making significant contributions to India’s tribal heritage, biodiversity conservation, medicinal plant wealth and healthcare ecosystem.
He said an AIIA at Mayurbhanj would not only address a longstanding institutional gap in eastern India but also emerge as a centre of excellence for Ayurveda education, research, healthcare and innovation.
“The district is home to the internationally acclaimed Similipal biosphere reserve, one of India’s richest biodiversity landscapes, and possesses significant medicinal plant resources that can support advanced Ayurveda research, conservation and education,” he noted.
After the meeting, Patra expressed confidence that the Ministry of AYUSH would give due consideration to the proposal in the larger interest of balanced regional development, healthcare accessibility and promotion of India’s traditional knowledge systems.