Chandigarh: The All India Ayurvedic Congress began here Thursday with experts issuing a clarion call to nearly 3,000 delegates from across the world for restoring the supremacy of Ayurveda system.
The Ayurvedic Congress is being held in north India for the first time with 2,992 delegates from the country, BRICS and SAARC nations assembling here for a brainstorming session which marks the beginning of the four-day Arogya Mela inaugurated by Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister Surjit Kumar Jyani, said an official release here.
Inaugurating the Arogya Mela, Jyani said, "It is unfortunate that the human race is becoming the victim of lifestyle diseases."
He said that obesity, hypertension, diabetes were becoming epidemic in the country with people refusing to adopt preventive lifestyle.
He said, "It is a matter of great concern that young population is becoming a slave and addicted to modern life comforts, electronic gadgets, stress prone lifestyle, inviting all lifestyle diseases."
He said that India, the land of Dhanvantri and Ayurveda, has the potential to become the torchbearer in Ayurveda to provide healing touch to humanity which is suffering especially in the third world countries, which cannot afford costly medical care system.
Asking Ayurveda doctors to evolve as per the changing requirements of medical science, Jyani said with the new pesticides, weedicides in the food cycle, it was imperative for Ayurveda to develop medicines to prevent the outbreak of new diseases afflicting humanity.
Speaking on the occasion, Padam Bhushan Vaidya Devender Triguna, President of All India Ayurvedic Congress, said the coming sessions during the congress would work towards the expansion and strengthening of academics in the field of Ayurveda especially in northern India.
He expressed concern over the inadequate infrastructure in the Government Ayurveda College and Hospital in Patiala and asked the health minister to improve the college.
The experts also called for adopting a holistic approach to improve the food cycle of humanity.
