Krishna Gopal Ayurveda Bhavan Trust, situated in the rural heart of Rajasthan, is one that can look back on its 70-year success story. At a cursory glance, you are likely to pass it off as one of the innumerable organisations that dot the map of India claiming devotion to the development of the ancient Indian medical system of Ayurveda, the system which is recognised by the government along with Allopathy and Homeopathy (ironically, unlike Sri Lanka, where Ayurveda is the only officially recognised and promoted medical system). Kerala, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh are some of the States which can boast of Ayurveda institutions, even universities of national fame, Rajasthan being at the top with the National Institute of Ayurveda. Krishna Gopal Ayurveda Bhavan is dedicated to treating the poor and the needy.

Running as a trust under the same name, Krishna Gopal Ayurveda Bhavan is situated at the nondescript village of Kaleda, some 140 km from Jaipur on the Jaipur-Kota road. It has its main hospital and production unit including a printing press. At Kaleda, treatment to patients, indoor and outdoor, is free. Funds are generated by earning profit from the sale of medicines and Ayurvedic books written by practising scholars and printed at the Trust’s press.

The Origin: Originally what started as a small venture jointly by Swami Krishnanandaji Maharaj, a monk, and an Ayurvedic scholar and the scion of the erstwhile Kaleda principality, Thakur Nathu Singh, in 1930, has now blossomed into an Ayurvedic medical complex producing as many as 436 medicines and drugs and running indoor hospitals, including outdoor dispensaries, that are treating patients free of cost. The total employment of the complex is 105 which includes qualified vaidyas as medical officers and a chief medical officer. The whole business, along with the administration, runs under the Trust, which was formed way back in 1945. After independence, Kaleda, although shy on the publicity front, has always remained a centre for concerned people who really care for the development of Ayurveda as an ancient Indian medical science.

Apart from ministers and chief ministers of Rajasthan and its neighbouring States, Union ministers and governors have been visiting the complex quite often to observe the silent revolution that goes on for the welfare of humanity. In 1959, the then Union Minister of Finance, Morarji Desai, had come to Kaleda to inaugurate the first All India Conference on Ayurveda. In 1989, the then Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, visited Kaleda along with Ashok Gehlot, the present Chief Minister of Rajasthan. In recent years, the activities of the Trust got a fillip under the leadership of Justice B. P. Berry, a former Judge of Rajasthan, who joined the Trust as its president. He even broadened the scope of the Trust through his novel programmes and schemes dedicated to the cause of suffering humanity and compassion. Presently, the Trust is being looked after by P. K. Jain, a former IAS officer, who is the managing trustee of the Trust.

Hospitals and Clinics: The Trust’s main hospital is at Kaleda, which has 30 beds each for males and females. The occupancy is generally 100 per cent in all seasons which establishes its popularity in the region. Indoor patients are mostly sufferers of chronic diseases and are generally ‘rejects’ from Allopathy. They are treated free. Not only the medicines, the diet for the patients including fruits and milk are provided free of cost. Indoor clinics are located at Ajmer and Jaipur and rural areas, where diagnosis and medicines to the patients are provided free of charge.

Finance—A Success Story: During the financial year 2001-2002, the Trust earned a net profit of Rs. 98 lakh through the sale of medicines and medical books printed by the Trust. Out of this, a sum of rupees Rs. 42.48 lakh was spent on the maintenance and running of hospitals including clinics and Rs. 42.41 lakh was spent on charity, that is, on free treatment of outdoor and indoor patients. This excludes the Trust’s expenditure on the purchase of raw material for manufacturing medicines and drugs. The total expenditure is 1.08 crore for the year. "The trust has an impeccable record of goodwill and philanthropy in the area", says the managing trustee and vice president of the Trust, P. K. Jain, who spends a sizeable part of his time and energy on running the Trust purely as a social worker. The Trust has a sizeable number of trustees, which include Daulat Ram Chaturvedi, former Director, Ayurveda, Government of Rajasthan, B. N. Sharma, J. C. Agrawal, S. S. Parnami, all former IAS officers, K. L. Kochar, former IAS and presently Press Adviser to the Vice-President of India, Justice (Rt.) Pana Chand Jain, S. S. Kothari, former Director, College Education, Government of Rajasthan, Prahlad Rai Devashri, former Director, Ayurveda, Government of Rajasthan, Deenbandhu Chowdhary, CEO, Dainik Navjyoti, Rameshwar Sharma, former V-C, Rajasthan University, Rao Narpat Singh of Baghera, Shyam Sunder Chapparwal, industrialist, Mahendra Vikram Singh, former Up-Zila Pramukh, Ajmer and Dr. Ratan Mishra, Jaipur.

The treatment provided by the Trust’s hospitals and clinics for diseases include asthma, arthritis, epilepsy, rheumatism, abdominal diseases, sexual debility, coryza, heart diseases, obesity, stress, fatigue, kidney and urinary tract disorders and cancer.

Despite being located in an interior rural area with poor communications, Kaleda has become known for Ayurvedic treatment which is evident from the considerable number of indoor patients drawn from far-flung areas of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and even from Himachal Pradesh.

About the authenticity and popularity of the Trust-made medicines, Jain claims that all the medicines manufactured by the Trust are strictly based on Ras Hridayatantra, a ‘grantha’ written by Swami Krishnanandji Maharaja, a co-founder of the Trust. The book is approved by the Government of India under the Drug and Cosmetics Act. Talking on ‘authenticity’, Jain refers to the much acclaimed Emeritus Scientist Dr. Ranjit Roy Chaudhury of the National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi who has shown how Ayurvedic drugs can be developed through two ground-breaking projects completed under the leadership of the Indian Council of Medical Research. One is the medicine called ‘Vijaysaar’ for the treatment of diabetes from ingredients drawn from the core of a tree found in the forests of Madhya Pradesh. Though it took 15 years, the drug’s efficacy has been established through double-blind, randomised, multi-centre trials that are acceptable to the international medical community. "A similar effort," says Jain, "is under way to harness ‘Kantakari’, another Ayurvedic medicine for the care of bronchial asthma".

All Ayurvedic medicines produced by the Trust are manufactured with the same care. The trust’s expansion programme at Parbatpura (Ajmer) includes updating modern technology for research and quality control". "Suvarnayukta Chyavanprash" produced by the Trust was tested om France and the U. S. A.where it was proved free from chemical impurity and class II preservatives. In addition, no traces of lead and mercury as well as living organisms, that is, bacteria and fungi, were found in the drugs.