Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 12: Minister for Health & Medical Education Bali Bhagat inaugurated a two day national workshop on conservation, development and marketing of medicinal plants in Jammu and Kashmir at University of Jammu.
The event, being organized by the Directorate of Indian Systems of Medicine in collaboration with State Medicinal Plants Board and National Medicinal Plants Board, would raise awareness on the need of both ex-situ cultivation of medicinal plants as well as in-situ conservation efforts through systematic surveys, augmenting local medicinal plants and aromatic species of medicinal significance through afforestation.
The Minister said Jammu & Kashmir is blessed with abundant wealth of medicinal and aromatic plants and the people have great faith in traditional systems of medicine. He emphasized strenuous efforts to tap and exploit the vast potential of medicinal plants of the State by preserving and developing the different medicinal varieties on scientific lines besides developing model nurseries both within the forest and on private land so that the germ plasm/ quality planting material is provided to the farmers who wish to adopt medicinal and aromatic plants as an alternative crop.
While elaborating further on the herbal wealth of Himalayan region of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh with a special mention of Sanjeevani Booti which was found in Himalaya, the Minister said that the Government is ensuring best healthcare services to the people in the State both through allopathic and AYUSH and 400 posts of Medical Officers have been referred to PSC which included 50 Ayurvedic, 16 Homeopathic and 39 posts of Unani.
Besides, proposal for establishing National Institute for High Altitude Medicinal Plants and National Institute for Yoga are under active consideration of the Government and will be established soon for which he urged Union Joint Secretary of AYUSH to expedite the same.
Joint Secretary Ministry of AYUSH, Roshan Jaggi, discussed the policies and programmes of the Ministry for propagation, promotion and conservation of Medicinal Plants, which is the basic raw material for manufacturing of AYUSH drugs.
Director, Environment Ecology and Remote Sensing, O.P Sharma Vidiarthi, shared his experience and the benefits of tree talk which he has initiated for the generation of mass awareness of medicinal & aromatic plant.
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