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1. Safeguarding Children
Context
• A major part of India’s population- around 158 million consists of children in the age group of 0-6 years.’ India is home to 472 million children upto the age of 18 years and comprising 39 per cent of the country’s population. There are roughly 30 million orphaned and abandoned children in India— that’s almost 4% of the youth population.
• According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), India has 29.6 million orphaned and abandoned children. However, figures provided by private organisations showed that in 2017, of these 30 million children, there were only 470,000 children in the institutionalised care.
• And, of these, roughly half a million children, only a fraction finds their way into family care because adoption rates in India are abysmally low. This means that there needs to be a huge readjustment in the Government’s focus on child development, as currently, millions of children are being denied opportunities to live a life of safety and good health.
• Adoption rates in India have always been low, but they have been dropping in the past few years. The Government’s Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) statistics show that in 2010, there were 5,693 in-country adoptions, while in 2017-2018, there were only 3,276 in-country adoptions. This fall occured because out of approximately 30 million children abandoned, only 261,000 are under institutionalised care, accounting for a meagre 0.87%.
• Data shows that while more than 29,000 prospective parents are willing to adopt, just 2,317 to 3,000 children are available for adoption. Adoption laws in India are strict, leading to exceptionally low numbers of adoptions taking place. From March 2019-2020, only 3,351 children were adopted. This suggests a wide gap between adoptable children and prospective parents, which may increase the length of the whole process. The reasons for low levels of adoption in India are manifold.
• Firstly, there aren’t enough children available for adoption because the ratio of abandoned children to children in institutionalised care is lopsided. Seeing children on the streets is the most common sight in India. The District Child Protection Officer should be taking the street children to a Child Care Institution (CCI), and if their parents aren’t found, then they should be placed for adoption.
• The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) data shows that there are 5,850 registered CCIs in India. But if unregistered ones are included in the basket, there are more than 8,000 such functioning institutions, and as per regulations, only registered CCIS can be linked to adoption agencies.
• Further, it says that there are 2,32,937 children in all registered and unregistered CCIs. However, not all CCIs in India are registered under the law. Including unregistered ones, there are a total of 8,000 CCIS.
• There needs to be a huge readjustment in the Government’s focus on child development because currently, millions of children are being denied opportunities to live a life of safety and good health. Adoption rates in India have always been low, but they have been dropping in the past few years.
• streets to institutionalised care and a supportive family. This can happen if the Government pushes its focus, money, and resources towards shutting down unregistered CCIs, holding district-level childcare officers accountable, and running a country-wide campaign on adoption another means of having a child.
Disability and Adoption
• In January 2020, CARA held a national consensus to discuss the possibility of improving and streamlining the adoption process Among other points of discussion, it stated that the institution prepared a classification of children with special needs, spanning 14 sub-categories.
• The categorisation would enable prospective adoptive parents to understand the children’s needs better and enhance their chances of adoption. However, according to the latest available data shared by CARA, only 40 children with disabilities were adopted between 2018 and 2019, accounting for approximately 1% of the total number of children adopted in the year.
• Annual trends reveal that domestic adoptions of children with special needs are dwinding with each passing year. At the same time, forcigners adopting children with special needs is steadily rising since prospective adoptive Indian parents faced with a long waiting period for a healthy’ baby, end up adopting children with disabilities as a last resort. The cultural aversion towards children with special needs results in most of them being referred to overseas prospe adoptive parents.
• The year 2015 saw a moment of transition in the adoption process with the introduction of the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA). CARA is an autonomous and statutory body of MoWCD under the Government of India.
• The system acts as a centralised digital database of adoptable children and prospective parents. It functions as the nodal body for the adoption of Indian children and is mandated to monitor and regulate
• in-country and inter-country adoptions. CARA is designated as the Central Authority to deal with inter-country adoptions in accordance with the provisions of the 1993 Hague Convention on Inter-country Adoption, ratified by the Government of India in 2003.
• It primarily deals with the adoption of “orphaned, abandoned and surrendered” children through recognised adoption agencies. In 2018, CARA allowed individuals in a live-in relationship to adopt children from and within India. Although the main focus of the CARA mechanism is to quicken the process of adoption, the waiting period is growing longer.
• Adoption practices in India are primarily governed by the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956 (HAMA) and Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 (JJ Act). Both legislations have different provisions and objectives. HAMA is the statute that governs the adoption of and by Hindus. The definition of ‘Hindus’ here includes Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs. It gives an adoptive child all the rights of a natutally-born child, including the right to inheritance.
• Until the JJ Act, the Gurading and Wards Act (GWA), 1980 was the only means for non-Hindu individuals to become guardians of children. However, since the GWA appoints individuals as legal guardians and not natural parents, guardianship is terminated once the ward turns 21 and the ward assumes individuals identify.
• CARA is an autonomous and statutory body of MoWCD under the Government of India. The system acts as a centralised digital database of adoptable children and prospective parents. It functions as the nodal body for the adoption of Indian children and is mandated to monitor and regulate in-country and inter-country adoptions.
Stakeholders in Adoption Process
1. Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) CARA ensures smooth functioning of the adoption process from time to time, issues Adoption Guidelines laying down procedures and processes to be followed by different stakeholders of the adoption programme.
2. State Adoption Resource Agency (SARA) SARA acts as a nodal body within the State to promote and monitor adoption and non-institutional care in coordination with CARA.
3. Specialised Adoption Agency (SAA) SAA is recognised by the State government under sub-Section 4 of Section 41 of the Act for the purpose of placing children in adoption.
4. Authorised Foreign Adoption Agency (AFAA) AFAA is recognised as a foreign social or child welfare agency that is authorised by CARA on the recommendation of the concerned Central Authority or Government Department of that country for coordinating all matters relating to adoption of an Indian child by a citizen of that country.
5. District Child Protection Unit (DCPU) — DCPU is a unit set up by the State government at district level under Section 61A of the Act. It identifies orphan, abandoned, and surrendered children in the district and gets them declared legally-free for adoption by Child Welfare Committee.
• Of the 30 million children without a legal guardian or care, less than half a million are actually in institutionalised care. The rest are left wandering on the streets, vulnerable to abuse and trafficking. With so few children actually in care homes, most orphans are not ‘available for legal adoption.
• Even then, prospective parents are choosy, with most wanting a child without a disability and between the age of 0-2 years old. There are several threats facing orphans in India, especially for those who live on the streets. One of thebiggest risks is exploitation.
• As per the Juvenilee Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, orphan and destitute children in the country are “Children in need of care and protection” (CNCP).
• The primary responsibility of execution of the Act lies with the States/UTs. The MoWCD is implementing a centrally sponsored Child Protection Services (CPS) Scheme (erstwhile Integrated Child Protection Scheme) for supporting the children in difficult circumstances. The primary responsibility of implementation of the Scheme lies with the State Governments/UT Administrations.
• Under the provisions of the CPS, the Central Government is providing financial assistance to the States/UTs for undertaking a situational analysis of children in difficult circumstances, inter-alia.
• Under the Scheme, institutional care to “Children in need of care and protection” and “Children in Conflict with Law” is provided in CCIs. The Scheme also provides for non-institutional care whrerin support is extended for adoption, foster care and sponsorship.
• The financial norms for various components under ICPS (now, CPS) where revised wef from 1 April 2014. The key features of the revised Scheme included increased maintenance grant for children in homes, from Rs. 750tp Rs. 2,000 per child per month.
• The ICPS was renamed as CPS as sub-scheme under Umbrella Integrated Child Development Services wef 1 Qpril 2017. Following modifications have come into effect pursuant to the said order:
1. Maintenance grant for children in homes was enhanced to Rs 2,160 per child per month.
2. Sitting allowance of Child Welfare Committee and Juvenile Justice Board’s members has been enhanced from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500 in accordance with new JJ Model Rules, 2016, and
3. Programmatic allocation for CHILDLINE India Foundation was increased by Rs 9.70 crore to address expansion and emerging protection needs.
• The Ministry of Women and Child Development has submitted that Hindu adoption (under HAMA) which happens directly between relatives does not get to CARA and thus data regarding such adoptions is not available.
• In this backdrop, the committee has recommended that the process of adoption needs to be simplified by taking a close relook at the various regulations guiding the procedure of adoption and the Ministry can engage with concerned experts working in this field to get feedback on the practical difficulties which prospective parents are facing.
• The panel recommends that the issue of children with special needs requires special focus in terms of highlighting and advocacy at various Mission POSHAN 2.0 is an Integrated Nutrition Support Programme which seeks to address the challenges of malnutrition in children, adolescent girls, pregnant women, and lactating mothers through a strategic shift in nutrition content and delivery, and by creation of a convergent ecosystem to develop and promote practices that nurture health, wellness and immunity.
• Platforms, besides regular sensitising of prospective parents for adoption of such children. In 2018, a social audit report by NCPCR on shelter homes had revealed that out of the 2,874 children’s homes, only 54 were found to be complying with the JJ Act, and out of 185 shelter homes which were audited, only 19 had records of children residing there.
• The Ministry is administering various schemes for the welfare, development and protection of children. To achieve the above objectives, the Union Cabinet has recently approved 3 importa Umbrella Schemes to be implemented in mission mode. 1.e., Mission Vatsalya, Mission Poshan 2.0, and Mission Shakti.
• Mission Vatsalya: In this Mission, Children have been recognised by policy makers as one of the supreme national assets. The objective is to secure a healthy and happy childhood for every child in India, foster a sensitive, supportive and synchronised ecosystem for development of children; assist States/UTs in delivering the mandate or the JJ Act 2015; and achieve the SDG goals.
• The prime objective is to address gaps in State action for women and children and to promote ministerial and inter-sectoral convergence to gender equitable and child-centered legislation, polici and programmes.
• Mission POSHAN 2.0: It is an Integrated Nutrition Support Programme which seeks to address the challenges of malnutrition in children, adolescent girls, pregnant women, and lactating mothers through a strategic shift in nutrition content and delivery, and by creation of a convergent ecosystem to develop and promote practices that nurture health, wellness and immunity. It seeks to optimise the quality and delivery of food under the Supplementary Nutrition Programme.
• Under the programme, nutritional norms, standards, quality, and testing of THR will be improved and greater stakeholder and beneficiary participation will be promoted besides traditional community food habits. POSHAN 2.0 will bring three important programmes/schemes under its ambit, viz., Anganwadi Services, Scheme for Adolescent Girls and Poshan Abhiyaan. and immunity.
• Mission Shakti: This Scheme envisages a unified citizen-centric lifecycle support for women through integrated care. safety, protection, rehabilitation, and empowerment to unshackle women as they progress through various stages of their life, Mission Shakti has two sub schemes ‘Sambal’ and ‘Samarthya’.
• The Sambal sub-scheme consists of the existing scheme of One Stop Centre (OSC), 181 Women Helplines (WHL), and Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP). Besides, a new component of Nari Adalats has been added as women’s collectives to promote and facilitate alternative dispute resolution and gender justice in society and within families.
• The “Samarthya” sub scheme is for empowerment of women, consisting of existing schemes of Ujjwala, Swadhar Greh, and Working Women Hostel In addition, the National Creche Scheme for Children of Working Mothers and the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY), which have been under the Umbrella ICDS Scheme till now, are also subsumed in “Samarthya’.
• All the three Missions will be implemented during the 15th Finance Commission period 2021-22 to 2025-26.
• The PM CARES for Children Scheme was launched on 29 May 2021 to support children who have lost both e parents or legal guardian or adoptive parents or surviving parent to Covid-19 during the period starting om 11 March 2020.
• The objective of the Scheme is to ensure comprehensive care and protection of children in a sustained manner, and enable their well-being through health insurance, empower them through education, and equip them for self-sufficient existence with financial support.
• The PM CARES for Children Scheme inter-alia provides support to these children through convergent approach, gap funding for ensuring education, health, monthly stipend from the age of 18 years, and lumpsum amount of Rs 10 lakh on attaining 23 years of age.
Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri-Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY)
• PM-JAY provides a cover of Rs 5 lakhs per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation, across public and private empanelled hospitals in India.
• In case of child identified for support under PM CARES for Children, he/she shall be entitled to the cover of Rs 5 lakh.
• The Government strives to ensure well-nourished and happy children and self-reliant women by providing them with an environment which is accessible, affordable, reliable and free from all forms of discrimination and violence.
2. Sustainable Economic Growth
Context
• According to a new assessment from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which was prepared by the world’s foremost climate scientists, rising temperatures will lead to catastrophic weather extremes also resulting in rising sea levels in the coming years.’
• The report states that human activity is “unambiguously” to blame for more severe climate events such as heat waves, floods, and droughts, and attaining net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 is a must.
• As outlined in the Paris Agreement, it was required to keep the global temperature change to 1.5°C. Despite the fact that Southeast Asian countries are expected to be among the most hit by climate change, the majority of the region’s governments lack carbon reduction policies that will effectively decrease the severity of climate hazards.
• As greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise despite widely-promised climate action by the world’s bigger carbon polluters (developed countries), a global warming increase of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, a marker that world leaders pledged not to exceed this century when the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015, could be reached by 2030— possibly sooner.
• Under all emission scenarios, the climate-critical 1.5°C temperature increase is likely to arrive a decade earlier than IPCC predicted three years ago. It is also predicted that Southeast Asia, is one of the planet’s most vulnerable regions to climate change.
• Sea levels are rising faster than elsewhere, and shorelines are retreating in coastal areas where 450 million people reside, even though Southeast Asia is expected to warm slightly less than the global average.
• According to a new study, rising seas are expected to cost Asia’s largest cities billions of dollars of damage this decade, with the impact magnified by tectonic shifts and the consequences of groundwater removal.
• It is evident that limiting global warming to 1.5°C is a major challenge that can only be met if urgent worldwide action is taken to cut greenhouse gas emissions and conserve and restore ecosystems.?
• Our response to climate change should begin with a focus on priorities like expanding the use of clean and renewable energy. Since 1990, South Asia’s emissions have increased by 3.3 per cent each year.
• Due to its strong reliance on coal, India has risen to become the world’s seventh-largest greenhouse gas emitter, despite the fact that per capita and per unit of greenhouse gas emissions in India remain the lowest among the other developing countries by worldwide standards. Coal will continue to dominate power generation in India for the foreseeable future.
• from flooding that could harm hydropower, necessitate measures to deal with rising peak electrical demands. Sustainable economic growth requires a more robust energy sector.
• India should work in collaboration with industry associations, domestic banks, specialised energy efficiency agencies, and service companies, to upgrade transmission and distribution systems, and promote clean technology and renewable energy development.
• Entire South Asia has long been one of the world’s leasturbanised regions, with urban population accounting for only about 28% of the region’s total population of 1.4 billion people.
• However, urban grc r ates of 2.53 per cent have surpassed global az regional averages (UN Population Division 2007), putting the country’s cities on a high growth trajectory toward development. Sudden spikes in urban-rural movement due to climate changes and other variables will exacerbate infrastructure gaps, social service shortages, and urban management challenges associated with the region’s largely unplanned urbanization.
level rise, rising events will aggravate
• Climate threats such as sea-level rise temperatures, and extreme weather events will a South Asian cities’ susceptibility.
• Coastal and maior delta areas that are 10 metres or less above sea lem are home to around 14% of the region’s metropolit population, totaling about 400 million people.
• The megacities of Delhi, Dhaka, Kolkata, and Mumbai will be the most affected.
According to Climate Vulnerability Index
• Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Bihar are highly vulnerable to extreme climate events such as floods, droughts, and cyclones.
• It also says that more than 80 per cent of Indi ‘s population lives in districts highly vulnerable tcxtreme hydro-met disasters. A district-by-district action plan is essential because most Indian dists are vulnerable to extreme weather occurrences.
• Only 63 per cent of Indian districts have a District Disaster Management Flam according to the Council on Energy, Environment a Water (CEEW) report.
• With the cost of the climate crisis rising exponential India would require green finance for adaptation-based climate action.
• Developed countries must reclaim to at COP26 by delivering the USD 100 billion promised since 2009 and committing to increasing climate finance over the next decade.
• In addition, India must collaborate with other countries to establish a Global Resilience Reserve Fund, which could function as a form of climate insurance.
• Over 400 financial institutions with a combined asset value of over USD 130 trillion (thgh the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero GFANZ) have pledged to align their portfolios to net-zero by 2030.
• This new coalition demonstrates that banks, asset managers, and asset owners understand the business case for climate action as well as the severe risks of investing in the previous high-carbon, polluting economy.
• The issue now is for these institutions to scale up action at the necessary pace, set intermediate milestones that match with their net-zero goals, and transparently report on their progress, all while following a robust science-based approach.
Green Financial Investments
• “Green financial investments” might provide a significant contribution to the expected financial assistance for the essential energy transformation over the next 10 years.
• In practice, only a small percentage of the private capital flows to emerging economies, and even that is skewed disproportionately in a few nations.
• According to OECD estimates, private flows accounted for only around USD 16.5 billion of the USD 80 billion in climate finance mobilised in 2019.
• India’s emissions trajectory is compatible with a 2°C future. Although India’s sectoral policies are still not in line with the Paris Agreement, the country’s ambitious renewable energy strategy is a positive indicator.
o The orientalist concept of development and environmental effect in the lowest is a spurious dichotomy. To grow, de India requires its own fair amount worldwide of carbon space.
• Either the West can ards. provide the necessary scale of money or clean technology to allow India to swiftly deploy renewable energy to fuel its development or the West must substantially reduce its emissions to allow for rising Indian emissions in the future years.
• As the Prime Minister appropriately said, India will highlight the need to comprehensively address climate change issues including equitable distribution of carbon space, support for mitigation, and adaptation.
• India would also highlight resilience-building measures, financial mobilisation, technology transfer, and the necessity of sustainable lifestyles for green and inclusive growth.
• Changing rainfall patterns combined with rising temperatures may cause soil moisture and water retention capacity to deteriorate, affecting home and industrial water supply, hydropower generation, and agricultural production.
• By 2050, changes in rainfall and glacial melt are expected her major economies to increase discharge in the region’s major rivers. River flows are expected to fall significantly later this century, resulting in severe water shortages.
• We are in dire need of policy advocacy and technical guidance to address climate change and vulnerability issues in agriculture, water, and other sensitive sectors.
• Our water sector projects should be developed and planned to help communities and economies cope with the 9.59 effects of climate change by Australia minimizing water losses and implementing integrated water resource management to promote community and economic resilience.
Significance of Climate Fintech
• Fintechs are the digital financial technol catalysing decarbonisation throughout the world which provides their consumers with innovative ideas green financial solutions, and services to help them minimise their carbon footprints.
• The merging of three areas- climate, finance, and technology, is known as sustainable Fintech. Climate Fintech solutions are digital innovations, applications, and platicams that assist organisations and individuals in savits, spending, and investing in environmental-friendly ways.
• Climate Fintech is an important intermediary in the financial services industry, mobilising resources, and influencing behaviour. Customers may now make more mindful shopping decisions, investors can develop more climate-focused portfolios for their clients, and insurance companies can understand weather dangers better, thanks to Climate Fintechs. They provide firms with greater tools for monitoring, measuring, and mitigating their environmental impact.
• Climate Fintech while also being carbon-neutral. It intermediary in also assists businesses in tracking and services industi offsetting their environmental impacts resources, and by reducing greenhouse gas emissions behavior.
• Regulators and governments, in addition to startups and companies, play an essential role in the development of a robust global Climate Fintech Ecosystem.
• To promote both sustainable finance and Green Fintech, a rising number of initiatives and concrete action plans are being established.
• The ultimate purpose of Climate Fintech is to redirect financial flows toward decarbonisation. We’ll need the combined power of startup innovation, business commitment, and government policy to accomplish this.
• Startup accelerators are well-positioned to assist in the development and connection of potential tech startups with the larger ecosystem.
• The action plan of India should involve more investments, to raise the share of renewable energy in power generation, electrification of fossil-fuel-dependent businesses, commercial production of green hydrogen, and promotion of electric vehicles in order to fulfill its objectives.
• Additionally, the country has to use biofuels and carbon sequestration, deploy lower carbon energy, and make itself more sustainable in its energy production process.
• This strategy would not only open up enormous employment opportunities but also make the country leap forward on a sustainable development path.
• As per the Global Climate Risk Index12, published by a global environmental think-tank, India is amongst the top 10 most vulnerable countries. To enhance our accountability, we need to re-orient our short, medium, and long-term environmental targets.
• The need of the hour is to ensure our renewable energy goals. Secondly, emissions-intensive industries must be decarbonised.
• Although India has made significant progress in reducing emission intensity, more effort is needed to reduce emissions in heavy industries such as iron and steel, chemicals, and cement, as these are among the highest emitters, and demand for their products is growing due to rapid urbanisation and economic growth.
• Thirdly, we require more “carbon sinks,’ or carbon-storing Climate Fintech is an important intermediary in the financial services industry, mobilising resources, and influencing behavior.
• Customers may now make more mindful shopping decisions, investors can develop more climate-focused portfolios for their clients, and insurance companies can understand weather dangers better, thanks to Climate Fintechs. ecosystems such as forests, oceans, and wetlands. More carbon sinks must be created to complement our efforts to cut emissions.
3. Holistic Healthcare
Context
• According to a World Health Organization report, about 80 per cent of the world population uses traditional medicine systems in some or the other way.
• India has a distinctive and unique traditional medicine base, with each system having its own ancient philosophy, medicinal knowledge, perception, and practices that align with the regional cultures, traditions, and beliefs.
• The traditional medicine systems in India include Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, Sowa Rigpa, and Homeopathy which is known as Ayush. All these systems were formulated, practised, and perfected in a continuum much before the advent of modern health science.
• In many countries of the world, medical pluralism is the norm, and traditional medicine is one of the surest means to achieve total healthcare coverage for the world population using acceptable, safe, and economically-feasible methods.
• No system of medicine can single-handedly address all health concerns, but an integrative approach incorporating the positives of each can surely benefit mankind.
• The holistic patient-centered and individualised approach is the trademark of traditional systems and enables the patient-physician partnership to design or customise treatment and lifestyle advice in order to achieve the highest potential for well-being.
• This awareness combined with the increase in use of traditional medicine has brought the systems to the fore.
• The diverse activities ranging from the provision of prophylactic care to the management of disease and the effective implementation and integration of Ayush system to the public healthcare during the pandemic has garnered global attention to Ayush systems.
• This has enabled the signing of the Host Country Agreement for the establishment of Global Centre for Traditional Medicine (GCTM) at Jamnagar.
Term Holistic Health
• The term holistic health is used many times in literature with a variety of different connotations. Holism has its origin in the Greek word holos, which means ‘whole’. In this sense, holism is an approach that looks at things from a total perspective.
• Holistic health typically considers the individual as a whole, addressing the physical, mental, emotional, social, intellectual, and spiritual aspects. For example, Ayurveda defines health as swasthya, which also implies a state of being content in one’s natural state of inner harmony.”
• The holistic approach of Ayush systems is well reflected in the guidelines issued in the wake of the Covid-19 by the Ministry of Ayush.
• A mere glance will suffice to know that these guidelines contain recommendations on prevention, diet, mental health, Yoga Abhyas, measures for promoting systemic immunity, etc.
• The holistic pat holistic health and well-being’ were formulated emphasising the need for a individualised healthy lifestyle with Ayush preventive trademark of tree measures and care in respect of and enables the Covid-19 and long Covid-19.
• The holistic patient-centered and individualised approach is the trademark of traditional systems and enables the patient-physician partnership to design or customise treatment and lifestyle advice in order to achieve the highest potential for well-being.
• This awareness combined with the increase in public reported use of traditional medicine has brought Traditional Medicine Systems to the fore.
• The work on effective integration of yush was expedited after the formation of the Ministry of Ayush in 2014. This integration has been realised through coordination and collaboration at various levels of healthcare between the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the Ministry of Ayush.
NAM
• The National Ayush Mission (NAM) is an example of such elaborate integration wherein Ayushman Bharat- Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs) are being established across the country.
• The primary objective is to provide cost-effective Ayush services, with universal access through upgrading Ayush Hospitals and Dispensaries, co-location of Ayush facilities at Primary Health Centres, Community Health Centres and District Hospitals. Ayush HWCs are being operationalised to establish a holistic wellness model.
• Yet another effort can be seen in the integration of Ayush sysms in the National Programme for evention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases & Stroke (NPCDCS) wherein the implementation was done through the collaboration of the Ayush Research Councils with the Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
• This integration was deemed successful in the avenue of Non-Communicable Diseases owing to the fruitful outcomes observed in the patients, with the incorporation of Ayush interventions, Such integration has enabled enhancing the functional communication and exchange of information among the different streams of medicine.
• The use of Ayush as stand-alone and energy or adjunct therapy in Covid-19 has been highlighted through case reports available in the public domain reflecting the successful management in even severe Covid-19.
• The Ministry of Ayush had conducted many clinical trials during the pandemic with good outcomes in clinical recovery and quality of life in mild to moderate Covid-19 cases.
• The solid evidence base thus generated during the Covid-19 lays a foundation for exploring the use of Ayush therapies/ practices in the prophylaxis, management, and rehabilitation in infectious diseases too.
• The Ministry of Ayush had issued ‘A National Clinical Management protocol based on Ayurveda and Yoga for Management of Covid-19′ incorporating the traditional Ayurveda knowledge base, experience from clinical practices, and biological plausibility and emerging trends of ongoing clinical studies to facilitate decision making for Ayush practitioners to manage Covid-19.
• During the pandemic, the levels of integration and collaboration had intensified and the MoA had Holistic health is also considered an approach to life that incorporates multidimensional aspects of wellness.
• These approaches include the use of traditional medical systems, mind-body-spirit interventions, manipulative and body-based approaches, biological therapies and energy therapies.
• The Ministry of Ayush and AIIMS, together, establishing the Department of Integrative Medicine at AIIMS is a remarkable initiative in this regard. Similarly, efforts are underway to set up Integrated Ayush Cancer Care facilities at the National Cancer Institute at Jhajjar.
• The Ayush Ministry has also collaborated with the UK’s London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine to conduct a study on Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) for promoting recovery from Covid-19.
• Signing MoUs for ‘undertaking Collaborative Research’ to boost the acceptability of Ayush systems at the international level can also be seen as a directed effort for the development of Ayush systems as well as widening the scope of integration.
• The use of traditional medicines has increased and the Traditional Medicinal (TM) industries are growing fast, along with the globalisation of TM products/services which are pervasive.
• Integration of the knowledge base of modern tools and techniques with applications of Ayush principles can help in its wider acceptance globally.
• Holistic health emphasizes the connection of mind, body, and spirit, where the goal is to achieve well-being in all the realms of health, and adopting the principles of TM into the healthcare architecture is the surest way for effective, economic, and conservative health coverage.