'Why spend on vaccines?' IMA slams Harsh Vardhan for endorsing Baba Ramdev's 'Coronil'

The IMA sought to know whether it was justified and ethical for the country's health minister to release and promote a 'fabricated unscientific' product.

The Indian Medical Association has lambasted the Centre for throwing its weight behind Baba Ramdev's alleged Covid-19 cure Coronil and wondered how Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan attended an event where a 'blatant lie of World Health Organisation accreditation' was peddled.
 

Slamming the Union Minister for promoting the drug, the IMA wondered how Dr Harsh Vardhan allowed Ramdev to claim that Coronil can be used for prevention, treatment and post-Covid management. Ramdev also claimed that his medicine had received approval from the Drugs Controller General of India and certification from the WHO.
 

After Ramdev's claim went viral, the WHO issued a statement that it had not reviewed or certified the effectiveness of any traditional medicine for Covid-19 treatment.

In a letter to Dr Harsh Vardhan, the IMA posed a series of questions to him.
 

The IMA sought to know whether it was justified and ethical for the country's health minister to release and promote a 'fabricated unscientific' product.
 

The medical body also sought to know the nature and time frame of the clinical trials done for Coronil and the number of patients who had been tested with Ramdev's medicine.

The IMA wondered that if Coronil is so effective for Covid-19 treatment why is the government spending Rs 35,000 crore on the vaccination drive.
 

Seeking an explanation from Dr Harsh Vardhan, the IMA accused him of disrespecting the Medical Council of India code of conduct and threatened to drag him before the National Medical Commission.