Even as the World Ayurveda Expo and Herbal Trade Fair 2002 were inaugurated, final preparations are going on the stalls to ready them for visitors.

Various Ayurvedic products, raw herbals, medicinal plants, equipments for treating health problems and books on Ayurveda are being showcased at the expo. Stall owners are optimistic that this expo will boost the prospects of Ayurveda and allied products.

"Our aim is to create awareness among the visitors about the merits of Ayurveda and thus market our products," opined Dr. Michael Punnathara who is in charge of the stall by Naggarjuna Pharmaceuticals. The stall sports details about the products of the firm and also has a display of plants suitable for each birth star. Medicinal plants will be on sale at the stall from tomorrow.

Jadi Booti Evam Sugandhiya Tel Vikas Parishad is a stall by the Madhya Pradesh government. Its main focus is raw herbals used in the preparation of various medicines. "We are hoping to promote the sale of these raw materials and Kerala is a potential market for Ayurveda" said D D Sharma, member of the Madhya Pradesh Minor Forest Produce (Training and Development) Co-operative Federation Ltd.

Also ready for the expo is a stall by Shree Baidyanath Ayurved Bhavan Pvt Ltd. From Nagpur and their product is Shahi Chywanaprash, which helps revitalize the whole body. It also fights ageing, claims manufactures.
Kottakkal Arya Vidhya Sala and Himalaya Pharmaceuticals are among the companies that are participating in the Expo.

The Expo, which has a total of 220 stalls, will be on till November 5.