Shri Prataprao Jadhav, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Ayush and Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare, chaired the Fifth Meeting of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee of the Ministry of Ayush in New Delhi today. The meeting focused on “Yoga and Naturopathy” and deliberated on their growing relevance in preventive healthcare, healthy lifestyles, rehabilitation and holistic well-being.
Addressing the Committee, Union Minister Shri Prataprao Jadhav said that Yoga and Naturopathy hold a distinct place in India's rich knowledge tradition and offer holistic, drug-free approaches focused on health promotion and overall well-being. He said Yoga contributes to physical, mental and emotional well-being, while Naturopathy emphasises nutrition, lifestyle modification, natural therapies and the body's inherent healing capacity.
Shri Prataprao Jadhav highlighted the growing burden of non-communicable diseases, stress and mental health challenges associated with modern lifestyles. He emphasised that alongside treatment of diseases, there is a strong need to focus on disease prevention and promotion of healthy lifestyles. He said Yoga and Naturopathy can support healthy ageing, rehabilitation, mental health, stress and pain management, maternal and child health and wellness. Highlighting the importance of healthy ageing, he said that with India’s elderly population increasing, maintaining physical activity, mental health, mobility, independence and quality of life is essential, and Yoga and Naturopathy can play an important role in supporting healthy and active ageing.
Shri Jadhav said that the Government is strengthening the institutional ecosystem for Yoga and Naturopathy through the Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga (MDNIY), Yoga Certification Board (YCB), National Institute of Naturopathy (NIN), Central Council for Research in Yoga and Naturopathy (CCRYN) and Naturopathy Registration Board (NRB). He highlighted their role in education, training, certification, research, healthcare, quality assurance and professional standardisation, and said that the establishment of the Naturopathy Registration Board is an important step towards strengthening registration and quality standards in Naturopathy.
Emphasising the need to integrate India’s traditional knowledge systems with modern scientific research and evidence, Shri Jadhav said, “Tradition is our strength, science is its evidence, and quality is our priority.” He stressed that Yoga and Naturopathy should complement modern medicine, with greater focus on prevention, health promotion, lifestyle modification, rehabilitation and wellness.
A detailed presentation was made by Ms. Alarmelmangai D., Joint Secretary, Ministry of Ayush, covering the institutional, educational, research and outreach ecosystem of Yoga and Naturopathy. The presentation highlighted 22 CCRYN units nationwide, 100+ universities offering Yoga courses, 5,000+ Yoga centres, 113 accredited institutions and 29 accredited Personnel Certification Bodies, along with India’s growing research base of 10,500+ peer-reviewed, PubMed-indexed publications and initiatives in research collaboration, digital outreach, wellness tourism and employment generation.
Members of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee present at the meeting included Dr. Swami Sachidanand Hari Sakshi, Shri Ashtikar Patil Nagesh Bapurao, Shri Khalilur Rahman, Shri Nilesh Dnyandev Lanke and Shri Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu from Lok Sabha; Shri Ghanshyam Tiwari, Shri Sadanand Mhalu Shet Tanavade, Shri Babubhai Jesangbhai Desai and Dr. Laxmikant Bajpayee from Rajya Sabha; and Permanent Special Invitees Shri Krishna Prasad Tenneti and Smt. Jyotsna Charandas Mahant from Lok Sabha, and Smt. Dharmshila Gupta and Smt. Renuka Chowdhury from Rajya Sabha. During the deliberations, Members of Parliament and expert members unanimously agreed on the need for a unified regulatory mechanism for education in Yoga and Naturopathy.
Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of Ayush; Dr. Mukhtar Ahmad Qasmi, Advisor (Unani), Ministry of Ayush; Yoga and Naturopathy experts and stakeholders; and other senior officials of the Ministry were also present at the meeting.
The Ministry outlined the following seven key priority areas for strengthening Yoga and Naturopathy in the coming years :
- Strengthening education and institutional infrastructure in Yoga and Naturopathy.
- Promoting scientific research and evidence generation in both systems.
- Strengthening certification, accreditation and professional standards in Yoga.
- Enhancing registration, quality assurance and standardisation in Naturopathy.
- Expanding community-level access to Yoga- and Naturopathy-based preventive and wellness services.
- Promoting Yoga and Naturopathy as key components of wellness tourism and medical value travel in India.
- Taking India’s Yoga and Naturopathy traditions to the global stage, backed by scientific evidence and quality standards.
The meeting reaffirmed the importance of continued collaboration between the Ministry, Parliament and stakeholders in strengthening Yoga and Naturopathy as evidence-based, accessible systems of preventive healthcare, in line with the vision of a Healthy India and Viksit Bharat–2047.
