NEW DELHI, May 7 (Xinhua) -- India's Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Thursday said the clinical trials of Ayurvedic medicines to fight COVID-19 has begun in the country.
"Today is an important day with regard to the fight that is going across the world against the COVID-19 that has posed widespread difficulties. Keeping this in view in India a historic work has begun," Vardhan said. "Today clinical trials of Ayush medicines like Ashwagandha, Yashtimadhu, Guduchi Pippali, Ayush-64 on health workers and those working on the frontline in high risk areas have begun."
According to Vardhan, the ministry of Ayush, the ministry of health and the ministry of science and technology through the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) jointly with technical support of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) were carrying out trials.
The minister said the trials were being conducted to see the role of Ayurvedic medicine in the fight against the COVID-19.
Meanwhile, the ICMR has also started a multi-center clinical trial to assess the safety of the convalescent plasma to limit any COVID-19 related complications.
Convalescent plasma is one of several emerging therapies but there is no robust evidence to support it for routine therapy, the ICMR said.
Last month the top health research body said currently there were no approved, definitive therapies for the COVID-19 disease.
Meanwhile, the number of COVID-19 cases in India reached 52,952 and death toll rose to 1,783 on Thursday. Enditem
