The chicken you eat today may contain antibiotic residues that are quietly building resistance in your body — and veterinary Ayurveda is the solution. Dr. Bimal Kumar Choudhury makes a powerful case that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in livestock — accelerated by routine use of tetracycline, doxycycline, and other antibiotics in poultry farming — is directly entering the human food chain. A chicken grown to 2 kg in 35 days through antibiotic intervention carries those residues in its meat, effectively dosing consumers without their knowledge.
The 2019 ban on Colistin — a drug banned in the US in 2000 but sold to India until 2019 — illustrates the regulatory gap. In response, a 2021 MOU between the Ministry of Ayurveda and the Department of Animal Husbandry formally recognised Veterinary Ayurveda, with Pasu Ayurveda now being integrated into veterinary curricula from 2023 onwards.
The scientific credibility is demonstrated through a clinical trial: green gram (increases spermatogenesis), onion (raises testosterone), and garlic (improves lipid function) were tested against testosterone injection in poultry studs — with the organic group showing superior sustained results. Ancient texts including Ashwa Shastra, Gaja Chikitsa, and Gava Ayurveda — now digitised in the Odisha State Museum Library — constitute a comprehensive, waiting-to-be-applied pharmacopoeia.

About the Speaker:
Dr Bimal Kumar Choudhury is a Veterinary Surgeon and President, National Indian Veterinary Association Youth Wing Odisha.