in india, herbal medicines worth Rs 900 crore are produced annually while the revenue earned through their yearly export has risen to Rs 120 crore. Despite this there is no check to ensure that only genuine medicines make it to the shelves. Even the drug controller of India, P Sengupta, says his office acts only on specific complaints.

“We urgently need to have a regulatory body if we are to utilise our traditional knowledge of Ayurveda in an effective manner, without losing credibility,” says Ranjit Roy Chaudhury, chairman, scientific advisory committee on traditional medicine, Indian Council of Medical Research ( icmr ).

Owing to the absence of any regulation