The Bureau of Indian Standards has brought out standards equipment used in Ayurveda traditional therapies and traditional medicine to ensure quality and streamline the industry.
The BIS, Chennai, held meeting with various stakeholders, including manufacturers of Ayurveda drugs and representatives from educational institutions on Thursday. Officials said the BIS is creating awareness on standards related to Panchkarma Equipment like droni and shirodhara yantra, which are equipment used in Ayurveda procedures and treatment, and also on Ashvagandha root specification.
With such traditional treatment centres becoming popular in the State, it is imperative to bring standards to safeguard patients’ well-being. The standards developed by BIS Ayush department will specify basic requirements of the equipment, materials to be used and tests to ensure quality.
Similarly, Ashvagandha, the shrub used along with herbs for different medications, will also be covered by the standard, IS 18098:22. There are about 20 requirements for the shrub, including tests for microbiological parameters and level of pesticide residues, said officials.
The BIS is in the process of identifying manufacturers, ayurveda practitioners and researchers of ayurvedic sciences to sensitise the standards and promote uniformity in design, and materials used for efficacy of treatments.
The recently launched standards are of voluntary BIS certification, and the manufacturers will be encouraged to register with the BIS for licences, officials added.
