I am happy to be present at today’s seminar.

Our eminent speaker for this evening, Dr. Deepak Dudhmande will be addressing the topic ‘Similarity between Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine’ and ‘Drugless approach to health in Ayurveda’.

On behalf of the Embassy, I would like to extend a warm welcome to all of you present here today.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Throughout history, the multi-faceted interaction between India and China has included the element of learning from each other’s systems of medicine.

It is now well-acknowledged that it was the Buddhists who borrowed the concepts of Ayurveda that reached China with Buddhism in the 2nd/ 3rd centuries CE. Buddhists’ commitment to medicine paved the way for entry of ancient Indian medicine or Ayurveda into China and its eventual absorption in Chinese body scientific. For instance, Siddhasàra, a very important classic medical literature laying special emphasis on clinical knowledge which was written by Ravigupta in mid-7th century CE in India is also known as Xi Tan Suo Luo by transliteration in Chinese.

We also know that Dr. Dwarkanath Kotnis during his stay in China had educated people on the principles of traditional medicine and trained them on the use of local herbs. In contemporary China, Liao Yuchun’s book “Ayurveda: India’s Traditional Medicine” is an often quoted work.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Governments of India and China have been exploring ways and means to enhance cooperation in traditional knowledge and medicine systems which hold tremendous potential for global health.

It may be recalled that in January 2008, the then Department of AYUSH, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare signed a MoU covering cooperation in traditional medicine with State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine [SATCM]. Most recently, during the recent successful visit of Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi to China in May 2015, the tenure of the 2008 MoU was further extended.

At the sixth session of the India-China Joint Committee on Scientific and Technological cooperation held in Beijing in September 2013, both sides agreed to cooperate in traditional knowledge and medicine.

As we have already been told, today’s seminar is the first Ayurveda related activity organized by the AYUSH cell in Embassy of India, Beijing after its establishment.

I seek the support of our friends and well-wishers to take the process of India-China cooperation in traditional knowledge and medicine forward.

Thank you.
(Beijing, 17 August 2015)