MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court observed that the Siddha system of medicine requires more patronage from the Union and State governments and that sufficient funds should be allocated for Research and Development (R&D).
A Bench comprising Justices P N Prakash and B Pugalendhi made the observations on a PIL filed by a government Siddha doctor Balasubramanian seeking direction to conduct virology test on a Siddha medicine ‘IMPRO’ created by him which, according to him, can cure Covid-19.
An expert committee after scrutinising the medicine, found that it may have anti-viral effect. The committee had sent the medicine to the Central Council for Research on Ayurveda and Siddha (CCRAS) for further tests.
Holding that it is the duty of the government to provide timely treatment, the judges directed CCRAS to expedite the tests and file a report on the medicine at the next hearing on August 3. Earlier, Justice Pugalendhi expressed that though the Union government announced around Rs 2,000 crore for the Ministry of AYUSH in 2020-2021 budget, no amount was allocated exclusively for the Siddha system of medicine.