Renu Kshetry

Kathmandu, June 7:

Even though most of the herbs mentioned in Chandranighantu, a century-old manuscript, have received patents of other countries, the manuscript will not be documented this year as well because the Singha Durbar Baidhya Khana Development Committee (SDBKDC) did not submit a budget proposal for the documentation and preservation of the treasure trove. Dr Ram Narayan Sah, managing director of the (SDBKDC), said the committee did not submit

the budget, as no meeting was held on the matter. “We could not decide whether to print the original manuscript or print a revised version by including recently-identified herbs,” said Dr Sah. Dr Hari Nath Acharya, spokesperson of the Ministry of Health and Population, said no budget would be allocated for the manuscript project this year as the SDBKDC did not submit any proposal on the matter.

Dr Khil Raj Adhikary, a senior Ayurveda doctor at the Department of Ayurveda, said the Singha

Durbar Baidhya Khana Development Committee should document the manuscript at the earliest to secure the property and patent rights. An expert said that token money given by the World Health Organisation to the SDBKDC in 1997 for the documentation of the manuscript

was used for other purposes. “The project is being delayed because the government has not been able to provide a huge sum of money as expected by the SDBKDC.”