‘Putrajeevak Beej’ creates uproar in the Rajya Sabha.
By Dileep Thekkethil
BENGALURU: Has yoga maestro Baba Ramdev concocted a special medicine to help women deliver only male children?
Whether that ridiculous possibility is true or not, the opposition parties in India tore into the ruling BJP-led government in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, asking the government to ban a so-called ayurvedic medicine produced by a pharmacy owned by Baba Ramdev, which promises birth of male child.
The opposition sought the government to take stringent action against the manufacturer of the infertility treatment medicine, which according to them is ‘illegal and unconstitutional’.
The medicine in question called ‘Putrajeevak Beej’ was shown in Rajya Sabha by the JD (U) leader KC Tyagi. He claimed that it was bought from Divya Pharmacy, a pharma company owned by Baba Ramdev, that promised the delivery of a male child.
He also displayed a purchase receipt of the product dated April 14, 2015, and said such products that mislead people should not be allowed to be sold in the market. Tyagi criticised the role played by Ramdev, addressing him as “the brand ambassador of Haryana”, in propagating such illegal and unconstitutional products.
He also asked “if the government of India under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi approves of this.”
As the protest alleviated in the house, Jaya Bachchan of Samajwadi Party took the packet of infertility medicine and gave it to health Minister JP Nadda.
PJ Kurien, the deputy chairman of Rajya Shbha, told the house that sales and promotion of such medicines that are used for sex selection or even prenatal sex determination are unconstitutional but he declined to take up the issue any further saying that the chair has regulations in dealing with such issues.
Nadda told the house that the issue comes under the department of AAYUSH but nevertheless the government will take adequate action after looking into the allegations made by the opposition.
Nadda also said that he understands the seriousness of the issue as he himself has seen a packet of the medicine. He added that the sales or promotion of such medicine is against the Prime Minister’s ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padao’ campaign and said that the government is very concerned about maintaining sex-ratio.
In spite of Nadda’s promise, Tyagi pulled out many more packets of the medicine, and distributed it to members of the house.
The description of the medicine on the official website of Divya Pharmacy Store reads, “Unique herbal product of putrajeevak which is aphrodisiac, controls habitual abortion and helps in sterility”.
It added: “A unique herbal product, Putrajeevak seed is beneficial for female reproductive health. Dosage: Make a fine powder of both Putrajeevak seed (Beej), take an hour before breakfast & dinner.”
Soon after the news broke, the website took the product out of the category.
A search by The American Bazaar for Divya Pharmacy’s Putrajeevak Beej was found listed on Amazon, at a price tag of $7.99. Interestingly, people who bought the product from Amazon also bought Shivlingi Beej, another medicine used to treat infertility.