The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)-Kerala will host the 5th edition of the Global Ayurveda Summit and the 10th edition of the Kerala Health Tourism 2023 – International Conference and Exposition at Adlux International Convention Centre, Angamaly, on October 26 and 27.
These concurrent events are aimed at positioning Kerala as the preferred destination for medical value tourism and are being supported by the Ministry of Ayush and the Government of Kerala, Dr. P.M. Varier, convener of the event and chief physician and managing trustee of Arya Vaidyasala, Kottakkal, told the media here on Tuesday. Quoting a study done by the Kerala Sasthra Sahithya Parishad (KSSP) five years ago, he said the Ayurveda system of medicine was relied on just by approximately 10% of India’s population.
Slow growth in Kerala
Post-pandemic, Ayurveda is gaining popularity outside Kerala and in innumerable countries, while its growth trajectory in the State (where it has strong roots) is slow. It is possibly because of the longer days of treatment and the permission given by many other States to pursue Ayurveda too to fight the pandemic. A study is on to identify the reasons for the lull in the sector, despite the increasing patient footfall. Nowadays, Ayurvedic medicines are available even in easy-to-use capsule form, he added.
Dr. S. Sajikumar, past chairman of CII, spoke of how Ayurveda was already a key component of leisure tourism. It can offer holistic, complete solutions with the help of the modern system of medicine, including for ageing gracefully. It is now practised in over 30 countries, but there are challenges in exporting medicines. In India, Ayurveda has grown from a $3 billion sector to a $24 billion sector.
Kerala offers global quality healthcare in Ayurveda and modern medicine at a fraction of the cost in the developed world, said Jose Dominic, past chairman of CII. Ayurveda is nowadays getting popular among youngsters, he said and added that 2024 would see a marked improvement in health tourism in Kerala.
Dr. Renjith Krishnan, member, CII Kerala’s healthcare panel and CEO of Kinder Group of Hospitals, said his hospital adopted Ayurveda, especially for pre- and post-natal care of women. The international health tourism business is growing in India, despite constraints such as migration of nurses abroad. Dr. Yadu Narayanan Mooss, co-convenor of the summit and executive director of Vaidyaratnam Oushadhasala, too was present.
A start-up pavilion highlighting innovative trends and ideas in healthcare and Ayurveda too will be there at the summit, which will be attended by delegates from Bangladesh, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, UK, and the Czech Republic. An exhibition will be open to members of the public free of cost.
