New Delhi

Ayurveda is now legally recognised as a traditional medicine system in over 25 countries and the Indian Ayush sector’s market size has expanded from $3 billion in 2014 to $23.3 billion in 2022, at a CAGR of 17 per cent, according to Union Minister of State for Ayush, Prataprao Jadhav.

He said, “The expansion of Ayush-based medical tourism, facilitated by the Ayush Visa, has increased the number of international patients seeking treatment in India.”

Talking about Ayush’s popularity within the country, Jadhav cited the report of the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) as part of the 79th round of the National Sample Survey (NSS) conducted between July 2022 to June 2023, that observed that 95 per cent of rural and 96 per cent of urban respondents are aware of Ayush

“Ayush exports have increased from $1.09 billion in 2014 to $1.54 billion in 2020. Over 900 DPIIT-recognised Ayush startups have emerged, with 52 per cent originating from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. Ayush treatments have been integrated in government hospitals, benefiting 5.4 crore patients,” he said in a recent reply in Rajya Sabha.

Highlighting the government policy of allowing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to 100 per cent in the Ayush sector to encourage global investments, Jadhav said, “The sector’s growth has led to a boost in manufacturing and exports, with over 53,000 MSMEs receiving support.”

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He said the Ministry of Ayush has established ‘Strategic Policy and Facilitation Bureau (SPFB)’, in collaboration with Invest India under Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) for strategic policymaking, investment facilitation, and stakeholder engagement to promote domestic and foreign investments.

Elaborating on efforts to promote Ayush, the MoS said the Ministry of Ayush organised the B2B Conference under the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation on Traditional Medicine in 2023 which generated investment interest worth Rs 590 crore.