The Ministry of AYUSH is gearing up to mark the 10th National Ayurveda Day on Tuesday at the All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA), Goa. Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH, Prataprao Jadhav, said in a recent curtain-raiser, “Ayurveda is a sustainable, integrative global healthcare solution for both human health and environmental well-being.” He also underlined that the theme this year, “Ayurveda for People & Planet,” reflects India’s commitment to advancing Ayurveda not just as a system of medicine, but as a way of life rooted in harmony with the environment.
Previously, Ayurveda Day was celebrated on Dhanvantari Jayanti, which resulted in the date varying each year. Approximately six months ago, the government officially announced that, starting in 2025, Ayurveda Day would be observed annually on September 23. This fixed calendar identity is intended to facilitate better planning of both national and international events tied to Ayurveda.
Now, for the 10th edition, a variety of initiatives are lined up under the theme “Ayurveda for People & Planet.” Among them are health-check and awareness campaigns such as “Little Steps to Wellness,” “Lead the Mislead” (to counter false claims), “Ayurveda Aahara for Obesity,” and programs focused on plant health and veterinary Ayurveda. A key facility to be inaugurated is the Integrative Oncology Unit at AIIA Goa, along with infrastructure such as a Central Sterile Supply Department, Blood Storage Unit, Linen Processing Care, and the Ran-Bhaji Utsav. Several Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) are to be signed with academic, international, and industrial stakeholders to strengthen research and collaboration.
Part of the push is also in digitization and public access: the DRAVYA portal (Digitized Retrieval Application for Versatile Yardstick of Ayush Substances) will make Ayurvedic ingredient data more accessible. The “Desh ka Swasthya Parikshan” campaign under CCRAS will seek to assess community health. Awards, publications, and releases, like “Ayurveda for Sports Medicine,” “Insight for Restful Sleep,” and grants for hackathon winners, are also on the agenda. These multiple vectors of action suggest the government wants Ayurveda Day to be more than symbolic.
Looking ahead, if implemented well, these efforts could produce several tangible benefits: greater awareness among the public about preventive and holistic health; more integration of Ayurveda into mainstream health programs; improved scientific and regulatory credibility; enhanced international collaborations; and potential growth in wellness tourism. On the ecological front, emphasizing Ayurveda’s environmental links may help advance sustainable practices, biodiversity protection, and traditional knowledge preservation.
At the same time, challenges remain. Ensuring that awareness campaigns translate into behavior change (diet, lifestyle, etc.), quality and safety standards are maintained across many AYUSH practitioners, balancing integrative oncology and modern medical systems without overstating claims, and managing logistics and capacity at institutions in remote areas are non-trivial. Also, public trust depends on evidence: research, transparency, and monitoring must keep up with the scale of promotional activity.