Demand for AYUSH courses has increased after COVID-19 Pandemic: Tibbia College Principal

Read here the excerpts from the interview with Dr. Mohd. Zubair, Principal of Ayurvedic and Unani Tibbia College and Hospital, Delhi.

Shiksha spoke to Dr. Mohd. Zubair, Principal of Ayurvedic and Unani Tibbia College and Hospital, Delhi which functions under the Delhi Government and offers courses in both Ayurveda and Unani. Read here the excerpts from the interview.

How Covid-19 pandemic affected the college and admission process of Ayurvedic and Unani Tibbia College?

Covid-19 definitely affected the class schedules, also the classes went online, and courses also got delayed as the NEET examination was postponed during the pandemic. That's why the entire admission process got delayed.

Students faced many challenges in joining the classes, also examinations were not held during the Covid period, the training period especially for PG scholars got delayed. UG and PG classes all went online during the pandemic and when the situation normalized by October -November 2021 then the physical classes started.

During the online classes, the practicals were taught with the help of online models and charts which we displayed in online classes and when the classes started physically again then we taught them again with these models and charts, especially for dissections in Anatomy. In physiology and pathology practicals were taught online and we again took classes physically later on, so that students get the proper skill training.

After the pandemic, there is more demand for traditional courses, have you observed the increased demand for BAMS and BUMS courses at Ayurvedic and Unani Tibbia College now as compared to earlier?

The demand for AYUSH courses has definitely increased after the pandemic due to the success of AYUSH in treating Covid-19 infection, especially for BAMS and BUMS courses. As you must have seen that many types of research and research papers got published during and after the Covid, which added to the demand for these traditional medicine courses.

The government established the AYUSH ministry before the pandemic, earlier these courses were under the Health Ministry. That increased the scope and popularity of the AYUSH-related courses. The results on patients were so promising, like in our college, we established a Covid care centre with the help of the Government of Delhi, there we treated nearly 989 patients, and out of these only one casualty was reported and all other patients became absolutely healthy and Covid free at our centre.

While admitting the students in BAMS and BUMS courses we observed that many candidates had completed their Class 12 exam seven and five years back, so when we asked them what they were doing in these years and why they are coming now, they said that now there is more scope in these courses and some students even came after completing BSc, MSc and four years physiotherapy courses.

Is the college planning to increase the number of seats for BAMS and BUMS courses?

Yes, we have started the process of hiring more faculty, so that we can apply for seat increase. Earlier, a few years back we had 40 seats each in BAMS and BUMS courses. Then we increased it to 60 seats, four years back. But now since the GOI has introduced 10% EWS quota, the seat increased to 75. Now, we are planning to increase seats and to apply for that in National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) we need to have better infrastructure and more staff. So, in August 2021, and in this year also, we submitted some seats to UPSC for direct recruitment,  and UPSC has also advertised these posts. There are about 26 posts in Unani and 22 posts in Ayurveda for Assistant Professors which we have submitted so far. 

The recruitment will be completed in four to five months. In some subjects in Unani, UPSC has even ended the interview and results are expected soon, so when we will get the candidates and faculty will increase then we will apply for an increase in seats in NCISM.

What are your priority areas as Principal of Ayurvedic and Unani Tibbia College and what's your vision for the future of the college?

There are 14 departments each in the Unani and Ayurveda sections. So our first priority is to start PG courses in all departments to make this college the Centre of Excellence. Until now, only four departments in Unani and four departments in Ayurveda are running the PG courses. An academic block is also under process. Our college is 100 years old and is also a Heritage building declared in 1996, so we cannot change the infrastructure of the building. Hence, we are planning to establish one tower each for 14 departments of Ayurveda and 14 departments of Unani and we will develop the new academic block in these towers.

The main thing is that the patients should get the best medical facilities and get treated well in both the Ayurveda and Unani streams. For this, we have established fully AC OPDs, and we have also established a new integrated Covid care centre which is a 100 bedded hospital. Since now there are not many cases of Covid, we have also started admitting general patients to this centre. 25 beds out of these 100 beds have ventilator facilities. The government has given training to the staff on how to use the ventilators.

Tell us something about career options available after BUMS and BAMS courses, how are the growth opportunities in these fields and starting salary packages?

After these courses, one can go into teaching lines, do research, individual practice and can join an AYUSH manufacturing unit, can be recruited as Medical Officer in Ayurveda or Unani government sector, and join a primary health centre. These graduates are in demand in other countries also as medical technicians and physicians.

Career opportunities and salary packages in this field are on par with the allopathic doctors in the government sector. There is no disparity between an ayurvedic and an allopathic practitioner in the government sector.

In private research and manufacturing unit, the starting packages are between INR 70 to INR 80 thousand per month. 

Anything you would like to add about Ayurvedic and Unani Tibbia College, or any recent developments?

As I already told you the college has an excellent record in the treatment of Covid. Delhi government had opened a Covid care centre on our college campus, which is still running.

There is less awareness about BUMS careers, so what would you advise the interested students, who should go for BUMS courses?

Basically, both Ayurveda and Unani treatments are based on dosas. Treatment is provided based on these dosas and patients’ temperaments.

As far as career options are concerned in BUMS, there is less awareness which we are trying to overcome, there are SC, and ST seats in BUMS courses lying vacant all over India due to the non-availability of candidates. However, after the pandemic, this condition has improved as now more SC, and ST candidates are coming for admissions. 

In this course, some subjects are in Urdu language and this was creating issues earlier as candidates were not opting for this course but last year government removed this issue and allowed candidates from non-Urdu backgrounds to join the courses. In the first year, it was advised to teach Urdu to BUMS students.

Read more:

• Students have multiple opportunities after BAMS: GS Ayurveda Medical College and Hospital Principal
• Career options are growing for BAMS, Ayurvedic Doctors: Principal Govt Ayurvedic College, Assam