A premier institution of research in the country, the Central Research Institute of Unani Medicine (CRIUM), will host the celebrations of the first National Unani Day on February 11.
The day marks the birth centenary of Hakim Ajmal Khan, a noted freedom fighter, renowned Unani medical practitioner and educationist born in 1858. The celebrations will spill over to the next two days, with a national seminar on ‘Skin diseases & Cosmetology in Unani Medicine’ scheduled on February 12 and 13. This was announced by Director-General, Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM), Vaidya K.S. Dhiman here on Wednesday. On proposals by the Union Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH), the Government of India had recently decided to declare February 11, the birthday of Hakim Ajmal Khan, as the National Unani Day.
Asked about the relevance of the theme of skin diseases chosen for the seminar, he said for decades the facility in Hyderabad had done yeoman research on ‘Vitiligo’, also known as leucoderma, and has the distinction of treating the maximum number of patients from across the country with this particular condition.
Vitiligo is a chronic disorder that causes depigmentation of patches of skin. White patches can occur anywhere on the body and people usually are affected with multiple patches. In particular, the disease left lasting impressions on the minds of young women who felt they were scorned in society, said Prof. Dhiman.
The National Unani Day celebrations would be presided over by Union Ministers Shripad Yesso Naik (AYUSH) and B. Dattatreya (Labour), Deputy Chief Minister of Telangana Mohd. Mahmood Ali and Health Minister C. Laxma Reddy among others.
