AYUSH Ministry distances itself from Patanjali's anti-COVID kit, asks company for details

On Tuesday, the Ministry of AYUSH issued a clarification on Patanjali Ayurved Ltd.'s claim that its new medicines would help in treating the novel coronavirus. It stated that the facts and details in this regard were not known to the Union government. Patanjali Ayurved Ltd. was informed that such advertisements of drugs are regulated under the provisions of Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954 and Rules thereunder and the directives issued by the Centre in the wake of COVID-19 outbreak.

The Ministry mentioned that a Gazette notification dated April 21, 2020, had listed the requirements and the manner in which research studies on COVID-19 with AYUSH medicines should be undertaken. In order to verify Patanjali Ayurved Ltd.'s claim, the company has been directed to provide details such as name and composition of the medicines for COVID-19 treatment, the site where the research study was conducted, sample size, Institutional Ethics Committee clearance, CTRI registration and the results of the study. Until the issue is duly examined, the AYUSH Ministry has asked the company to stop advertising such claims. Moreover, it requested the Uttarakhand Government to provide copies of license and product approval details of the Ayurvedic medicines claimed to treat the novel coronavirus.

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Ayurvedic medicine launched

Earlier in the day, Yoga guru Baba Ramdev announced that Patanjali Ayurved Ltd. had prepared the first Ayurvedic-clinically controlled, research, evidence, and trial based medicine to treat COVID-19. He mentioned that a clinical case study and clinical controlled trial had been conducted which found that 69% and 100% of the patients recovered in three and 7 days respectively. The 'Coronil' medicine is a part of a kit that also comprises another tablet and an oil. According to Baba Ramdev, active compounds of Ashwagandha, Giloy, and Tulsi had been used in 'Coronil'. He claimed that the entire kit would help in strengthening the immunity of a person. 

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