This workshop will be the occasion to present works in progress and the development of the Pharmasud Programme. A first group of papers will be concerned with the historical emergence of the Ayurvedic sector in Kerala and the current involvement of the state in organizing this sector. Attention will also be brought to the strategies developed by prominent pharmaceutical firms to position 'tradition' in today's market. A second set of interventions will examine issues of Indian medicinal plants and local knowledge conservation and protection in a transnational perspective, both historically (Kew botanical garden) and in contemporary times (European Patent Office). Finally, our interest will shift to the analysis of the Ayurvedic formulary – with neem as a case study – and to the study of the (biomedical) genealogies of selected ayurvedic pharmaceuticals.
Organizers
French Institute of Pondicherry
Centre de recherche médecine, sciences, santé et société (CERMES), Paris (EHESS-INSERM-CNRS)
