Indigenous Ayurveda medicine exempted from VAT

State Minister of Indigenous Medicine Sisira Jayakody announced on Thursday that Ayurveda products, medicines and industries, related to indigenous medicine, would be exempt from the Value Added Tax (VAT).

Addressing a press conference at the Presidential Media Centre, he said the government expects to make traditional medicine more accessible to the public through this. The State Minister said that the Cabinet of Ministers has granted approval for the establishment of a special bureau, dedicated to addressing issues faced by doctors following indigenous medicine. The bureau will also look at ensuring the sustainability of the indigenous medicine system.

It will conduct medical research, develop an appropriate framework to govern Ayurveda doctors, and collect information about those engaged in the profession, the State Minister said.

Jayakody also said that the Ayurveda Corporation plans to introduce Ayurveda healing centres, known as “Body Mantras”. These centres will be supervised by massage therapists with graduate level qualifications.

The State Minister added that most farmers who cultivate herbs necessary to manufacture Ayurveda medicine operate on a small scale. These raw materials aren’t adequate to meet the demand from those who manufacture medicine. The government wants to expand the cultivation by the end of the year. “We are planning to cultivate Long pepper (Thippili) plants alongside paddy cultivation. Long pepper plants can be harvested four times a year. The goal is to generate raw materials locally,” he said.