Unani medicine has been prevalent in India since ancient times. This practice originated in Greece (Greece) and then spread through the Arabs before becoming popular in India. Due to the presence of a variety of medicinal herbs in India, this practice has proven to be very beneficial here.
In order to properly promote and regulate Unani medicine, the Uttar Pradesh government established a separate Unani Directorate on October 11, 2008.
The state operates two government-run Unani Medical Colleges and 100-bed hospitals affiliated with them.
The Government Unani Medical College is located in Lucknow and Prayagraj. The Government Takmeel Utteeb College in Lucknow (established in 1902) is affiliated with Lucknow University, and the Government Unani Medical College in Prayagraj (established in 1904) is affiliated with Prof. Rajendra Singh (Rajjubhaiya) University, Prayagraj. Since the academic session 2021-22, these institutions have been affiliated with Mahayogi Guru Gorakhnath Ayush University, Gorakhpur.
The Government Unani Medical Colleges offer a five-and-a-half-year BUMS undergraduate course and a postgraduate MD/MS (Unani) course, both recognized by the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM), New Delhi (formerly known as the Central Council of Indian Medicine, CCIM).
The total intake capacity for undergraduate courses at both Government Unani Medical Colleges is 150 students.
For postgraduate courses, the total intake capacity at both Government Unani Medical Colleges is 72 students.
In addition to government colleges, there are 13 private Unani colleges in the state, located in Lucknow (3), Saharanpur (3), and one each in Aligarh, Gazipur, Azamgarh, Muzaffarnagar, Mathura, Fatehpur, and Sambhal. These colleges are affiliated with the nearest regional university, and since the academic session 2021-22, they are also affiliated with Mahayogi Guru Gorakhnath Ayush University, Gorakhpur.
These private colleges have a total intake capacity of 730 students for undergraduate courses and 30 students for postgraduate courses.
The state has a total of 254 government Unani hospitals, including 24 urban hospitals and 230 rural hospitals.
Health camps and Unani medicine services are regularly organized at events such as the Arogya Mela, Lucknow Mahotsav, Deva Mela, and Urs in Bareilly and Ambedkar Nagar, promoting Unani medicine and providing medical assistance to the public.
As of April 8, 2022, the total number of registered Unani practitioners (Hakims) under the Ayurveda and Unani Medicine Board, Uttar Pradesh, is 16,004.
Under the Unani department, government Ayurvedic and Unani medicine manufacturing units have been established in Lucknow. These units produce medicines that are distributed to government Unani hospitals and temporary camps across the state.
Additionally, 326 private pharmacies are established under the Unani department, 187 of which are GMP-certified.
