The Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy (PCIM&H) under the Ministry of AYUSH and the United States Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in New Delhi today for cooperation in the field of Traditional medicine and to collaborate in the identification, development, and dissemination of science-based standards in this field at an international level. The aim of this historic MoU is to promote the safety, quality and integrity of traditional medicines and botanical dietary supplements.
The MoU was signed by Dr. Rajiv Kumar Sharma, Director, PCIM & H and Dr. K.V. Surendra Nath, Senior Vice President, Global Sites, USP in the presence of Shri Ajit Mohan Sharan, Secretary, AYUSH, Shri Anil Ganeriwala, Joint Secretary, AYUSH, Shri Anurag Srivastav, Joint Secretary, AYUSH, Dr. Preetha Rajaraman, South Asia Program Director, Center for Global Health (CGH), U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Dr. Vid Nukala, Advisor, Office of Global Affairs (OGA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from the U.S. Embassy. The goal of the MOU is to enhance public health in India, USA, and globally by working together to:
a. Increase the awareness and understanding of quality traditional /herbal medicines, botanical dietary supplements, and their products;
b. Increase the availability and access to needed public standards for traditional / herbal medicines, botanical dietary supplements, and their products;
Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy (PCIM&H) is an autonomous organization under Ministry of AYUSH, Govt. of India with a primary mandate to develop pharmacopoeial standards for drugs/formulations used under Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani (ASU) and Homoeopathic systems of Medicine.
The U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) is a global health organization that improves lives through public standards and related programs that help ensure the quality, safety, and benefit of medicines and foods. USP’s public standards provide scientifically validated test methods and cover over 250 botanical ingredients and dosage forms including ashwagandha, turmeric, turmeric extract, and others. These globally-recognized standards are developed in a transparent process that reflects the input of a wide range of stakeholders, with the guidance of volunteer experts globally from regulators (like the FDA, USDA and State Boards of Pharmacy) as well as manufacturers, healthcare practitioners, academia and consumer groups.
On this occasion, Shri Ajit Mohan Sharan, Secretary, AYUSH said that this is an historic MoU which will take forward common cooperation in the field of traditional medicine. The MoU will help to harmonize the Pharmacopeia in terms of International Conventions. There are one lakh different formulations listed by TDKL and listing them in an understandable and comprehensible form will go a long way in increasing the utility of these formulations internationally.
Dr. KV Surendranath, Senior Vice President, Global Sites, USP said that this collaboration will amplify the global public health impact of both organizations by leveraging mutual scientific resources to advance international standards.
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