Union Budget 2021-22 Expectations for Ayurveda sector: Since coming to power at the Centre, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Central government have been promoting Ayurveda and traditional medicine of India across the country and at the global stage. As the Modi government gears up for the Union Budget 2021 likely to be presented in February, the Ayurveda sector has a number of expectations from the Centre.
Budget 2021 can be an ideal platform for the Central government to focus on Ayurvedic medicines in times of Covid pandemic, Padma Shri Dr. J Hareendran Nair told Financial Express Online. With an aim to promote new drug discovery in Ayurveda, world-class research facilities are needed to be set up and the central government should increase spends as aid or tax holidays, Dr. Nair said.
Dr. Nair said that during the unprecedented Covid pandemic, new medicines and solutions have become pivotal. In Budget 2021, the Central government should support the private sector to reduce dependency on imports of API’s and at the same time boost Ayurvedic medicines in line with the Atma Nirbhar Bharat vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Dr. Nair said.
For Budget 2021, Dr. Nair has proposed that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) should be waived off for products having license to sell as Ayurvedic Medicines. He said the price cuts would increase the consumption of Ayurvedic products.
In Budget 2021, the Modi government should provide funds for ayurvedic doctors, practitioners, and scholars to back research and new drug discovery. Research and new product development in Ayurveda are happening in a minuscule scale compared to those in modern medicine. The world is looking for safe and effective medicines from other systems of medicines and India and our Ayurvedic doctors as well as scholars can be the answer for that,” Dr. Nair said.
In Budget 2021, the Central government must provide a budget allocation to exhort Ayurvedic products across the world. This will open up newer markets for Ayurvedic products and more Forex for the country, Dr. Nair said. The central government should provide benefits for Ayurvedic Industry to encourage more investment more on Research, Standardisation, Clinical Studies, and Documentation thereby making the Ayurvedic products more acceptable in developed countries, Dr. Nair said.