Technology meets Ayurveda at new Centre of Excellence of IIT Jodhpur

15th May 2023
Technology meets Ayurveda at new Centre of Excellence of IIT Jodhpur
Team of AyurTech CoE , at IIT Jodhpur at the inaugurationn with Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of Ayush (centre)

Jodhpur, May 15, 2023: The Indian Institute of Technoology, Jodhpur has   inaugurated AyurTech Centre of Excellence (CoE) sponsored by the Ministry of Ayush.
The CoE AyurTech is part of the Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based Precision Healthcare at the school of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science (AIDE) at IIT Jodhpur.
The aim of this centre is to establish an AI-driven integrative framework for population and individual risk stratification and early actionable precision health interventions.
The Centre for AyurTech is being proposed as the first-of-its-kind initiative in the precision health and medicine space that would combine Electronics, Digital health and AI and multi-omics technologies for realising ‘Evidence-based Ayurveda’ solutions in a transdisciplinary framework.
More information on the centre can be obtained from https://aide.iitj.ac.in/index.php/coe.
The AyurTech CoE was inaugurated jointly  by the Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha,  Secretary, Ministry of Ayush, Government of India, and Prof. Santanu Chaudhury, Director, IIT Jodhpur.
A built-up space of approximately 3760 sq.ft. for an AyurTech facility for Phenotyping, Molecular Biology, Chemistry and Device development fabrication and characterization area has been provided by IIT Jodhpur. This space for technological immersion will enable capacity building in different domains of Ayurveda, increase employability in transdisciplinary domain, provide innovation and entrepreneurship opportunities and help in trans-disciplinary research programs.
Said Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha: “'Ayurveda Vigyaan' is the future of the  healthcare system. I congratulate IIT Jodhpur for taking this initiative and hope this will help researchers in developing indigenous technologies. I am sure in the upcoming years this centre will translate various research projects into successful outcomes for the betterment of the public at large.”
Added Prof. Santanu Chaudhury: “The collaboration of Ayurveda and Technology can bring a new medical field of 'integrated medicines' into the mainstream. The philosophy of this centre is to work on individual-centric medicine at an affordable cost using artificial intelligence and data science. The Ayurtech CoE will prioritize research on 'how to make sure people do not get a disease', than, 'treating a disease.”
Key research areas that the centre will focus on:
-Digital devices integrated with IoT, AI and computer vision for rapid, objective, and accurate assessments of Ayurveda parameters and tailoring interventions
-Blockchain powered highly secure and privacy preserving smart phone platforms, for large scale Ayurveda parameter screening, health, and intervention monitoring
-Laboratory and Point-of-Care (PoC) deployable sensors/ devices, systems and frameworks will be developed for Ayurveda drug standardization
-Open-source platforms of drug-disease networks using a compendium of molecular signatures of drugs, medicinal plants and Ayurveda based formulations for discoveries, poly-pharmacology and repurposing
-Ontological frameworks based on Natural Language Processing for integration of knowledge base of Ayurveda with contemporary terminologies and description
-Implementation of integrative medicine in different clinical settings
Investigators from the Department of Bioscience and Bioengineering, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Department of Electrical Engineering and Department of Chemistry at IIT Jodhpur, will collaborate with doctors at the  Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Rajasthan Ayurved University, University College of Ayurved, and AIIMS Jodhpur as part of the CoE AyurTech.
Dr. Mitali Mukerji, Professor, Department of Bioscience and Bioengineering, IIT Jodhpur and Dr. Ajay Agarwal, Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT Jodhpur, are jointly coordinating the project. Additionally, faculties from different departments of IIT Jodhpur including the School of Artificial Intelligence and Data science (AIDE) who have expertise in the field will be available for the project.
The Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur was established in 2008, to foster technology education and research in India. It functions from its sprawling residential campus of 852 acres on National Highway 62, North-Northwest of Jodhpur towards Nagaur.