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Guwahati: The Union minister of ports, shipping and waterways and Ayush, Sarbananda Sonowal visited the CSIR-North East Institute of Science and Technology (CSIR-NEIST) on Sunday and assured investment of Rs 200 crores to build capacity around the medicinal plant sector of the region.
The money will be used to develop infrastructure that will strengthen the medicinal plant storage for commercial purposes, boosting research and development of the local herbs and plants for medicinal purposes as well as providing a platform for traditional healers to further their treatments to a wider section of the society, said an official release.
"This rich bounty of nature must be used responsibly so that the ecology of the region is sustained, while the medicinal benefits from the herbs can be extracted responsibly", Sonowal said. “Our rich heritage of traditional medicine, be it ayurveda, siddha, yoga, unani, naturopathy, sowa rigpa or homoeopathy, has proven its efficacy for generation after generation and has withstood all challenges", he added further.
During the visit, Sonowal reviewed the progress of different activities undertaken by the institute to strengthen the potential of the medicinal plant market in the region. Of the proposed investments for capacity building at CSIR-NEIST, multiple cold storage facilities will be set up for the storage of herbal plants for commercial usage for Rs 100 crores.
A Centre of medicinal herbs and aromatic plants is also proposed to be set up to research and development of medicinal plants from the region. Furthermore, a Centre of Excellence is proposed to be developed with an outlay of Rs 35 crores. A hospital for traditional folk healers has also been proposed to explore possibilities from folk medicine. The cost for the development of this hospital is pegged at Rs 50 crores.
"We can power the engine of India’s growth by investing in its natural advantages and becoming a hub of medicinal plants in the world", Sonowal said, announcing these proposed projects.
