56-year-old Shripad Naik started his political journey in 1988 when he became the General Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the state of Goa. In 2014 Naik was re-elected to the 16th Lok Sabha – the lower house of parliament – for a fourth term. Prime Minister Modi appointed him as junior minister for Tourism at first. Later Naik was awarded independent charge of the Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH). Naik anchored Modi’s Yoga outreach across India and the world.
“The goal of achieving a healthy population can be met through the AYUSH system,” Naik says. In December 2018, he convened a meeting with ambassadors/high commissioners of 15 countries on globalization of traditional and alternative medicine systems for the benefit of humanity. The meeting was coordinated by Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences. The participants discussed the role played by traditional and complementary systems of medicine in combating non-communicable diseases.
In the 2019 elections, he contested again from North Goa and won the seat comfortably. He continues his role as junior minister with independent charge of the AYUSH Ministry, and has an additional role as junior minister in the Ministry of Defense. “I will focus on completing ongoing projects faster, while also embarking on new plans for yoga and alternative medicine,” Naik said in a message to the people of Goa soon after his portfolio was announced. He proposes to include yoga as an essential subject under the Physical Education curriculum for school and college students.
