About ITRA
The Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda (ITRA)is the first ‘Institute of National Importance’ in the sector of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy). The parliament of India passed the ‘Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda Act, 2020’ and the provisions of this act came into force on 15 October 2020. The ITRA is formed by the amalgamation of three different institutes namely(i) The Institute of Post Graduate Teaching and Research in Ayurveda (IPGT & RA), (ii) Shree Gulabkunverba Ayurved Mahavidyalaya, and (iii) The Indian Institute of Ayurvedic Pharmaceutical Sciences, Jamnagar. In addition, the Maharshi Patanjali Institute for Yoga Naturopathy Education and Research (MPIYNER), a constituent SFI college of the Gujarat Ayurved University, Jamnagar is also integrated with the ITRA under the department of Swasthavritta.
Historical Background:
Jamnagar has carved its niche as a pioneer in Ayurveda academics and research. It has a rich legacy of Ayurvedic tradition patronized by the erstwhile royal family. The princely state of Nawanagar (present Jamnagar) was a renowned seat of oriental studies. It has a long list of skilled Ayurvedic physicians like ZanduBhattji and Rasa Vaidya Bava Bhai Achalji. During the reign of Jam SahebDigvijaySinghji (1933 – 1948), an Ayurveda visionary Dr. P.M. Mehta who was trained in the western system of medicine was appointed as the royal physician of the state. Dr.P.M. Mehta followed and practiced Ayurveda and impressed upon the king and the queen to establish a centre for Ayurvedic Studies and as a result, Shri GulabkunverbaAyurvedic Society was established in the year 1940. In 1944, a palatial building was constructed with the generous contribution of the King of Nawanagar (Jamnagar) and some other donors at the cost of Rs.60, 00,000/- and the iconic building was named “DhanwantariMandir”.
Under the aegis of Shri GulabkunverbaAyurvedic Society, some renowned and enthusiastic physicians of Ayurveda were invited and they materialized the gigantic job of the translation of ‘Charaka Samhita’ into three languages i.e. English, Hindi & Gujarati which was published by the society in six volumes.
On 1st July 1946, a college for Ayurvedic Studies was established by Shri GulabkunverbaAyurvedic Society and was named Shree GulabkunverbaAyurvedMahavidyalaya. The first principal of the college was the great Ayurveda physician of the era, Vaidya YadavjiTrikamji. After independence in 1947, the Government of India started to work for the revival of Ayurveda and a few committees were appointed that recommended the establishment of a research Institution in Ayurveda.
As Jamnagar evolved as a prime seat of Ayurvedic learning, the ‘” Central Institute for Research in Indigenous System of Medicine (CIRISM)” came into being at DhanvantariMandir, Jamnagar in 1952. On 20th July 1956, a Central Post Graduate Centre was established named as ‘Centre for PG Studies and Research in Ayurveda’. In the year 1962, both these centres were merged to form ‘Institute for Ayurvedic Studies and Research (IASR)’. In 1967, the Post Graduate centre became an integral part of the Gujarat Ayurved University, Jamnagar and was rechristened as the ‘Institute of Post Graduate Teaching and Research in Ayurveda (IPGT & RA), Jamnagar. In the due course of time, this Institute gained enormous popularity and became the favourite destination to learn Ayurveda.
The Indian Institute of Ayurvedic Pharmaceutical Sciences, IIAPS came into existence on 1 August 1999, as a constituent Institute of the Gujarat Ayurved University, Jamnagar. It is the first Institute offering education in Ayurved Pharmacy at the Diploma and Bachelor levels.
MaharshiPatanjali Institute for Yoga Naturopathy Education and Research (MPIYNER) was established in the year 2000 as a full-fledged independent self-financed
institute of the Gujarat Ayurved University, Jamnagar. It is now a part of the Swasthavritta
department of the Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda, Jamnagar.
Vision:
To be an Institution par excellence with the highest standards of education, training, research, and health care through Ayurveda and allied sciences.
Mission:
- To serve as custodian and propagate the knowledge of Ayurveda and Allied health sciences globally
- To foster academic excellence and global competencies among students and researchers through quality education, training and research in Ayurveda and allied sciences.
- To create an environment for the generation of new knowledge through meaningful research adopting advanced methods of pedagogy and incorporating modern principles of academics integrated with highest ethical standards.
- To provide highest standard of comprehensive Ayurveda health care to community
Objectives:
- To be at the forefront of innovation by consistently updating curriculum, course content and practices enabling the students of Ayurveda and allied sciences to be competent and well versed so as to demonstrate high standards of Ayurveda education to all Ayurveda and allied science colleges.
- To bring together in one place educational and research facilities of the highest order for the training of personnel in all important branches of Ayurveda and allied sciences.
- To conduct interdisciplinary and collaborative research incorporating advances of basic sciences focused on validation and apprising of fundamental principles, safety and efficacy therapeutic approaches of Ayurveda and to enrich Ayurveda pharmacopeia and formularies through evidence-based research.
- To cater to national and global health care needs, especially in wellness, health promotion, prevention and management of diseases through Ayurveda and Yoga and mainstreaming of Ayurveda in the public health domain.
- To extend health services to the community for building a healthy, empowered and sustainable society
Functions:
- Undergraduate, postgraduate and need-based courses in Ayurveda, Pharmacy, Yoga, Naturopathy, Medicinal Plants, Medical astrology, Pashu Ayurveda, and Vriksha Ayurveda for national and international students.
- Provide skilled human resources for education, research, health care and pharma in Ayurveda and develop technologists to respond to the professional needs of the society through the incubation centre.
- Contributes referrals to Ayurveda hospital and nodal centre for telemedicine for Ayurveda.
- Develop an advanced state-of-the-art research centre to carry out collaborative research along with national and international repute organizations to explore and validate Ayurveda claims and principles.
- Take up extension and outreach programs to serve the community in the health-related area
- Provide information to the international community for education by establishing the International Centre for Ayurveda and Allied Sciences.
- Establishment of an Ayurveda drug repository and a state of the art of Ayurveda Pharmacy.
Functions:
The core values adopted by the Institute as enduring principles are Leadership, Integrity, Excellence, Accountability, Transparency, and Empathy.
Leadership: Be a Role model in Ayurveda education, health care and research.
Integrity: Research and teaching shall be carried out in an environment of academic freedom and honesty. The Institute will adhere to the highest standards of ethics in all its activities.
Excellence: The Institute is committed to excellence in all spheres of its activities, and through internal and external reviews, will work towards continuous improvement. The Institute will recognize exceptional efforts through awards and honours.
To create a safe, comprehensive and quality patient-centric healthcare delivery system that is accessible and affordable to all.
Accountability:ITRA, Jamnagar an Institute of National Importance established by an Act of Parliament, has been a recipient of public funds and recognizes that it is accountable to the people of India (through the Ministry of AYUSH and Governing Body of ITRA) and to all its immediate stakeholders including students, staff, faculty, and patients.
Transparency:The Institute will function according to defined procedures and rules, which will be informed to all stakeholders. The Institute will make public all important information related to its functioning.
Empathy: An awareness of health promotion and wellness and providing appropriate health care solutions to the community will be an integral part of the treatment, research and education programs of the Institute.
Milestones And Achievements
ITRA has gone through many milestones and has many achievements that contributed to the founding of the current image of the Institute
- It is the first Institute under AYUSH designated as the Institute of National Importance (INI).
- It is the first premier Teaching and Research Centre for Ayurveda in India.
- Institute is a pioneer in the Ayurveda field to introduce M.Pharm (Ayu.) & M.Sc. (Medicinal Plants), PhD degree courses and short-term regular Ayurvedic courses for Foreigners.
- Alumni at the top positions in administrative, academic, research and practice areas.
- The workforce developed by this Institute forms the backbone of Ayurvedic teaching, research and administration in India.
- As a constituent Institute of Gujarat Ayurved University, ITRA is accredited by NAAC with Grade “A” having 3.28 CGPA- 1st cycles, 2016.
- Hospital ITRA has been accredited by NABH in Aug 2019.
- This Institute is designated as WHO Collaborating Centre for Traditional Medicines (Ayurveda).
- Institute has introduced and established Pharmacovigilance for ASU Drugs and it has been designated as ‘National Pharmacovigilance Resource Centre (NPRC) for ASU Drugs’ in 2007 year and ‘Intermediary Pharmacovigilance Centre for Ayurveda (IPVC for Ayurveda)” by Ministry of AYUSH in2017
- Recognized as “Scientific & Industrial Research Organization (SIRO) by Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, GoI.
- Regularly publish peer-reviewed quarterly “AYU” Journal (PubMed indexed) since 1964.
- Institute has conserved more than 7500 ancient manuscripts (digitalized > 500).
- Digitalized PG theses database and released full script of PG theses in electronic format (2000-2014)