Surge in demand for preventive drugs seen post lockdown, Ayurveda in focus

Country is testing to see if herbal medicines such as ashwagandha can act as preventive instead of HCQ for Covid-19

India, the largest manufacturer of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) in the world, is now testing the efficacy of ayurvedic herbs like ashwagandha on its healthcare workers to see if it acts as a preventive medication against the novel coronavirus.  

HCQ is being primarily used as prophylaxis, to prevent the frontline healthcare workers like doctors, nurses, ward boys etc from catching the infection. Now two  trials have begun in about 10 hospitals across the country (Pune, Mumbai, Lucknow, Varanasi and Delhi) for testing ashwagandha tablets instead of HCQ as a preventive medication and another one on a combination of ayurvedic medicines on coronavirus