Thiruvananthapuram | The AMAI on Thursday urged the Kerala government to drop its proposal to establish a standalone AYUSH University, alleging that the move was initiated without consulting stakeholders and would adversely affect education, research and healthcare in the sector.

The demand comes two days after state Health Minister K Muraleedharan announced the government's decision to set up an exclusive AYUSH University for Ayurveda, Homoeopathy, Siddha and Unani systems of medicine.

The minister had said that the proposed university would provide an integrated framework for education, research, clinical studies and drug development, describing it as a historic step for the AYUSH sector in the state.

In a statement, the Ayurveda Medical Association of India (AMAI) said no organisations, teachers or students from the AYUSH sector had sought a separate university.

It claimed the government had constituted a committee to prepare a draft Bill for the proposed university without holding consultations with stakeholders, calling the move unilateral and undemocratic.

The association alleged that separating AYUSH institutions from the Kerala University of Health Sciences (KUHS) would isolate the sector from the mainstream healthcare education system.

It said the existing arrangement under KUHS enables AYUSH students to interact with other health science disciplines and facilitates interdisciplinary studies and collaborative research with modern medicine.

A separate university, it argued, would weaken such opportunities.

The AMAI also questioned the financial viability of the proposal, saying the limited number of AYUSH colleges in the state would not justify a separate university.

It said the expenditure on creating a new administrative set-up, including the offices of the Vice-Chancellor, Pro Vice-Chancellor and Registrar, besides new infrastructure, would have to be met from the sector's already limited budget allocation.

According to the association, this would affect treatment, education and research in the AYUSH sector. It also expressed concern that students and faculty could lose access to the integrated academic system, simulation laboratories and refresher courses currently available under KUHS.

The association urged the government to withdraw the proposed legislation for establishing the university, warning that a newly created institution would take years to attain the academic standards and administrative efficiency of the existing system, potentially affecting students' future.

The statement was issued by AMAI state president Dr K S Vishnu Namboothiri and state general secretary Dr P K Haridas.