Ayurveda, yoga, naturopathy, unani, siddha, and homoeopathy, together known as AYUSH, are no longer seen as alternatives sitting on the margins of Indian healthcare. They have become a serious, fast growing industry in their own right, currently worth more than 50 billion dollars, with more than 90 percent of ayurvedic and unani medicines built on plant based formulations. This shift from the margins to the mainstream has happened gradually, but the underlying numbers now make it hard to describe AYUSH as anything other than a substantial modern industry with its own supply chains, brands, and export ambitions.
A broader range of services than most people realise
The scope of AYUSH has also broadened considerably over the past decade. What was once largely associated with herbal remedies and classical treatment protocols now spans diet and nutrition counselling, structured yoga therapy programmes, spa and wellness services, and even humour therapy, reflecting a more holistic approach to preventive health that resonates with a broader consumer base than traditional medicine alone might attract. This expansion matters commercially, because it means AYUSH businesses are no longer competing purely within the traditional medicine category, they are competing in the much larger and faster growing global wellness market.
Large healthcare and wellness brands have taken notice of this shift and moved to capture it directly. Apollo, VLCC, and the Manipal Group have all set up dedicated wellness centres across the country that place traditional healthcare remedies at the centre of their offerings, signalling that mainstream healthcare players see genuine commercial and clinical value in this space rather than treating it as a peripheral offering.
Government infrastructure investment is accelerating
Government support has followed close behind this commercial momentum. The Union Budget 2025 to 2026 increased the Ministry of AYUSH's allocation to 3,992 crore rupees, up from 3,712 crore rupees the previous year, a meaningful year on year increase that reflects growing policy priority for the sector. This funding supports infrastructure development, research institutions, and the broader ecosystem needed to support an industry of this scale, from cultivation of medicinal plants through to manufacturing and distribution.
International recognition through the ICScheme
On the international front, the Ministry has developed the Central Sector Scheme for Promotion of International Cooperation for AYUSH, referred to as the ICScheme, to boost exports, recognition, research, and international collaboration in AYUSH systems. Under this scheme, India has already signed 25 country to country agreements, 52 institute to institute agreements, and 15 AYUSH chair agreements, a substantial diplomatic and academic footprint for what was, within living memory, considered a largely domestic and traditional practice.
The World Health Organization, working with the Ministry of AYUSH, has also helped develop and publish standardised terminology documents for ayurveda, unani, and siddha systems, helping to create a globally accepted, unified language for these traditional medical practices. This kind of standardisation work matters enormously for international credibility and trade, since a lack of shared terminology has historically been one of the barriers to traditional medicine systems being taken seriously within international regulatory and research frameworks.
Protecting traditional knowledge for the long term
There is also a quieter but important development underway: a traditional knowledge digital library is being built to prevent companies from patenting remedies that are part of India's traditional medical heritage. This is a genuinely significant protective measure, addressing a real historical concern where traditional Indian remedies and formulations were patented internationally by companies with no connection to their origin, effectively locking Indian practitioners and manufacturers out of commercialising their own traditional knowledge in certain markets. A well maintained digital library serves as documented prior art, making it considerably harder for such patents to be granted in the first place, and it gives Indian AYUSH manufacturers a much stronger legal footing when defending their right to commercialise formulations that have been part of the country's medical heritage for generations.
Growing interest from private equity and investors
There is a growing interest from numerous private equity firms in the traditional healthcare sector in India, reflecting investor confidence that the sector can scale commercially while retaining its traditional credibility. This kind of capital tends to accelerate professionalisation across the industry, funding better quality control, more sophisticated manufacturing, and stronger brand building, all of which help traditional medicine products compete credibly both domestically and in international markets where consumer expectations around packaging, consistency, and clinical evidence tend to be high. Investors entering this space are typically drawn by the combination of an already large domestic customer base, rising export potential, and a product category that benefits from genuine cultural authenticity that is difficult for competitors outside India to replicate convincingly.
How AYUSH businesses are building credibility with modern consumers
One of the more interesting challenges facing the AYUSH industry as it scales is building credibility with a generation of consumers, both domestic and international, who are accustomed to evidence based marketing claims and standardised quality assurance. Traditional medicine has historically relied heavily on generational trust and word of mouth reputation, but as AYUSH brands expand into modern retail channels, e-commerce, and export markets, they increasingly need to invest in clinical research, third party quality certification, and transparent sourcing information to meet the expectations of consumers who may have no prior cultural familiarity with ayurveda or unani medicine.
Several leading AYUSH brands have responded by funding formal clinical studies on their key products, pursuing Good Manufacturing Practice certification, and publishing detailed information about sourcing and formulation on their packaging and websites. This shift toward evidence based positioning, without abandoning the traditional heritage that gives these products their distinct identity, appears to be one of the more important strategic developments within the sector, and is likely to determine which AYUSH brands successfully scale internationally versus which remain primarily domestic players.
Export opportunities beyond traditional markets
While Europe and the Middle East have traditionally been the strongest export markets for Indian AYUSH products and wellness tourism, growing global interest in natural and plant based wellness products has opened opportunities in markets that historically had limited exposure to Indian traditional medicine, including parts of East Asia, where interest in complementary approaches to conventional medicine has been rising, and North America, where the broader wellness and supplements industry has grown substantially over the past decade. Capturing this opportunity generally requires AYUSH exporters to navigate different regulatory frameworks for health and wellness products in each target market, which vary considerably in how they classify and regulate traditional medicine products, herbal supplements, and cosmetics.
Integrating AYUSH with conventional hospital care
One of the more interesting developments within Indian healthcare is the growing integration of AYUSH services alongside conventional allopathic treatment within the same hospital systems, rather than the two existing as entirely separate parallel systems as they largely did in previous decades. Several major hospital groups now offer integrated care pathways for certain chronic conditions, such as combining conventional diabetes management with ayurvedic dietary and lifestyle guidance, or offering yoga and naturopathy based rehabilitation programmes alongside conventional post surgical recovery protocols. This integrated approach reflects growing clinical interest in complementary care models, and it also gives large hospital groups a way to capture patient spending across both conventional and traditional treatment preferences without losing that revenue to a separate, standalone wellness provider.
Frequently asked questions
How large is India's AYUSH industry?
The overall AYUSH industry in India is worth over 50 billion dollars as of FY24, spanning ayurveda, yoga, naturopathy, unani, siddha, and homoeopathy.
Which companies are investing in AYUSH and traditional wellness?
Major players including Apollo, VLCC, and the Manipal Group have set up dedicated wellness centres across India that focus on traditional healthcare remedies.
What is the ICScheme for AYUSH?
The Central Sector Scheme for Promotion of International Cooperation for AYUSH is a government initiative to boost exports, recognition, research, and international collaboration, under which India has signed 25 country to country agreements and 52 institute to institute agreements.
How much government funding does AYUSH receive?
The Union Budget 2025 to 2026 allocated 3,992 crore rupees to the Ministry of AYUSH, up from 3,712 crore rupees the previous year.
What is the traditional knowledge digital library?
It is an initiative to document India's traditional medical remedies and formulations, helping to prevent companies from patenting traditional knowledge that belongs to India's medical heritage.
What to watch over the next few years
Over the coming years, the clearest signals to watch for within the AYUSH sector include the pace of formal clinical research being funded by leading brands, the rate at which export markets diversify beyond Europe and the Middle East, and the extent to which large hospital groups continue to formally integrate AYUSH services alongside conventional care rather than operating them as separate business lines. Each of these developments would suggest the sector is continuing its shift from a traditional, trust based industry toward a modern, evidence oriented one, without losing the cultural heritage that remains central to its identity and appeal.
Key takeaways
AYUSH has moved decisively from the margins of Indian healthcare into a mainstream, investable industry with real international ambitions. With growing interest from private equity firms and steady policy backing, AYUSH is well positioned to be one of the more interesting growth stories in Indian healthcare over the coming years, blending ancient practice with modern business models and global market access.
