World Unani Day is annually observed across the globe on 11th February to commemorate the birth anniversary of Mohammad Ajmal Khan, better known as “Hakim Ajmal Khan”, a great Indian Unani Scholar and social reformer.
- The day also aims to spread awareness about healthcare delivery through the Unani system of medicine.
- The Unani Medicinal system originated in Greece. Later the Arabs saved much of the Greek Unani Literature and rendered it into Arabic.
Background:
i.The Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, Sowa-Rigpa and Homoeopathy (AYUSH), Government of India has declared the birth anniversary of Hakim Ajmal Khan, 11th February of every year as the World Unani Day to recognise his contribution towards the development of Unani medicine in India and across the world.
ii.The first ever World Unani Day was observed in 2017 at Central Research Institute of Unani Medicine (CRIUM), an autonomous organization under the Ministry of AYUSH, in Hyderabad, Telangana.
International Conference on Unani Medicine:
The Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM), Ministry of Ayush, has organised an International Conference on Unani Medicine on 10th & 11th February 2022 in hybrid virtual mode.
- The theme of this international conference is “Diet and Nutrition in Unani Medicine for Good Health and Well-Being”.
About Hakim Ajmal Khan:
i.Hakim Ajmal Khan, born on 11th February 1868 in Delhi, British India, is an Indian Unani physician, an educationist, and the founder of scientific research in the Unani System of Medicine.
ii.He was one of the founders of the Jamia Millia Islamia University, New Delhi. He was appointed as the first chancellor of the university in 1920 and remained in office until his death in 1927.
iii.He took great interest in the expansion and development of Unani sytem of medicine and built three important institutions, the Central College in Delhi, the Hindustani Dawakhana and the Ayurvedic and Unani Tibbiya College better known as Tibbia College, Karol Bagh, Delhi, which expanded research and practice in the field and saved the Unani System of Medicine from extinction in India.
iii.He was the founding member and President All-India Muslim League and he has also served as the President of the Indian Congress.
About Unani System:
i.Unani System of Medicine is the science in which we learn various states of body, in health and when not in health, and means by which health is likely to be lost and, when lost, is likely to be restored.
ii.Unani-Tibb or Unani Medicine is a form of traditional medicine practised in Middle- East and South- Asian countries which originated in Greece almost 2500 years back.
iii.The Unani system discusses the health and diseased condition of the human body in all preventive, promotive and curative aspects.
Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM):
Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM), established in 1978, is an autonomous organization under the Ministry of AYUSH.
It is an organisation for research in Unani Medicine, engaged in conducting scientific research on the applied as well as fundamental aspects of the Unani system of medicine.
Director-General– Prof. Asim Ali Khan
Headquarters– New Delhi, Delhi
