HEALTH FOR ALL: Health Minister R. Ashok inaugurating a conference on Ayurveda in Hassan on Saturday. Medical Education Minister V.S. Acharya is seen.

HASSAN: Minister for Health R. Ashok said here on Saturday that Ayurveda wards would be opened in 20 district hospitals in the State, including Bellary and Hassan, so that people coming there would have a choice of treatment

Inaugurating the State level Ayurveda conference — Karnataka NIMA (National Integrated Medical Conference) — here, he promised all help for the development of Ayurveda in the State.

Allocation

Mr. Ashok said that in the urbanised system, people were showing interest in Ayurveda and advised doctors to continue the system. He said that in order to provide Ayurveda treatment, the Government had increased the allocation for drugs from Rs 5.47 crore to Rs. 8.45 crore. It had decided to raise the honorarium of contract doctors from Rs. 6,000.

On the appeal by NIMA to allow Ayurveda doctors to practise Allopathy (modern medicine), the Health Minister said the matter had to be discussed with the Law Department as well in the Cabinet as the Supreme Court had given a judgment that Ayurveda doctors practising other system of medicine were as good as quacks.

The Minister promised to set right the anomaly in pay disparity and priority in recruitment.

He appealed to Medical Education Minister V.S. Acharya to consider setting up separate university for Ayurveda so that all Ayurveda Colleges could be brought under one roof.

Mr. Acharya, who released a souvenir "Spandana" said Ayurveda was of late sidelined and had to be brought into the mainstream.

He said that though there were 52 Ayurveda colleges in State, there was not much research activity. For the three Government Ayurveda Colleges and five aided colleges, the Government had set aside Rs. 25 lakh each for research.

Dr. Acharya said that 600 primary health centres in the State had no medical officers.

Earlier, State president of NIMA Mohammad Rafi Hakkeem appealed Government to allow them practice modern medicine.

Zilla panchayat president Hutchhe Gowda, outgoing NIMA State president K.C. Ballal and Principal of SDM Ayurveda College, Hassan, Prasanna Rao spoke.

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