Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, and World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, announced a commemorative postal stamp honoring ashwagandha during the Second WHO Global Traditional Medicine Summit in New Delhi, India.

The three-day summit brought global leaders, policymakers, scientists and practitioners from across to worlds to advance evidence-driven health systems incorporating traditional medicine.

In his closing address, Modi emphasized that traditional medicine must be “evidence-based, safe and globally trusted,” specifically citing ashwagandha as a model for “advancing global acceptance through evidence-based research on safety, quality and usage.”

At the conference, there was a dedicated event titled “Ashwagandha: From Traditional Wisdom to Global Impact,” which was organized by the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre in collaboration with the Ministry of Ayush, Government of India. It convened international authorities to deliberate on scientific validation, regulatory standards, safety assessment and quality standardization necessary to ashwagandha’s responsible global adoption.

The panel was moderated by Dr. JB Gupta, secretary of the World Ashwagandha Council, and explored critical quality challenges and evolving regulatory frameworks that must be addressed to ensure ashwagandha’s integration into global health care systems. The speakers included Roy Upton of the American Herbal Pharmacopoeia and Dr. Ikhlas Khan, director of the National Center for Natural Products Research at the University of Mississippi.

According to organizers, the panel reached a consensus on critical quality requirements—rigorous preclinical and clinical research, safety assessment, pharmacovigilance, standardization and verified root-only extraction. The experts emphasized inclusion of leaves and other non-root material constitutes adulteration that “alters phytochemical profiles, safety parameters and therapeutic properties.”

KSM-66 Ashwagandha, manufactured by Ixoreal Biomed Inc. (India), is backed by more than 70 clinical studies conducted at leading research institutions across five continents. Studies have examined benefits for stress reduction, cognitive enhancement, sleep quality, athletic performance, male and female reproductive health, and overall vitality.

“In 2022, Prime Mister Modi recognized our commitment to quality manufacturing and raising global awareness about ashwagandha in his ‘Mann Ki Baat,’ the monthly program where he addresses the nation on the last Sunday of each month,” said Ixoreal CEO Kartikeya Baldwa. “Today, as India positions ashwagandha as a flagship of evidence-based traditional medicine globally, our rigorous research on safety and efficacy, conducted at leading institutions worldwide, represents exactly the scientific foundation he’s calling for. The commemorative stamp symbolizes India’s gift to global wellness. Our job is ensuring the substance matches the symbol.”

For more information, visit www.ksm66ashwagandhaa.com.