Ayurveda Exam Paper Under Fire For Asking Students To Write An Essay On 'Women As Aphrodisiac'

A bizarre and objectionable question in an examination sheet has left the internet disgusted and angry.?

Many people are criticizing a question in an Ayurveda exam paper set by the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS). Calling it 'problematic' and 'regressive', the internet feels the question objectifies women.?

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The question was part of an exam handed to fourth-year students at RGUHS in Karnataka on Wednesday for a Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (BAMS) degree.

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According to the picture that has gone viral, the Ayurveda students were asked to write short essays. One of the topics they gave was "Stree as a Vajikarana dravya," - which translates to?"woman as an aphrodisiac medicine/syrup."

This question was part of the Kayachikitsa paper for the students.?

As soon as the picture started circulating on the internet, people weighed in to write about how problematic the question was.

Responding to the backlash, the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences claimed that 'the question was part of the prescribed syllabus and should be seen in context.

Reacting to the criticism,?Ramakrishna Reddy, Registrar (Evaluation) of RGUH, spoke to The Hindu and said,

"The question paper is set as per the syllabus. These are things taught in the textbook and are one of the methods of treatment. The university has no authority over adding or removing the textbook's contents as the Central Council set it for Indian Medicine. "

In the same Twitter thread, @theliverdr also pointed out several other problematic, regressive remarks in the Ayurveda course books.

"This is the answer that students are studying for their Bachelor's degree, rather than progressive, scientific facts that are useful for community and humanity," a Twitter user wrote.

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