Repealed By The Ayurveda Act, No. 31 of 1961

1. This Ordinance may be cited as the Indigenous Medicine Ordinance.

2. The College of Indigenous Medicine, the Hospital of Indigenous Medicine and the Pharmacy, Herbarium and Dispensary attached thereto, which are in existence on the date on which this Ordinance comes into operation, shall, with effect from that date, be maintained as Government institutions out of funds provided for the purpose by Parliament.[1]

3.

(1) The administration and management of the College of Indigenous Medicine, the Hospital of Indigenous Medicine and the Pharmacy, Herbarium and Dispensary attached thereto shall be vested in a board which shall be called the Board of Indigenous Medicine and shall consist of the following members :- (a) president and ten other members appointed by the Minister ; and (b) the person acting for the time being as Principal of the College : Provided that six of the members appointed by the Minister[1] under paragraph (a) shall be practitioners of indigenous medicine and that three at least of the six shall be persons registered under the Ayurvedic Medical Council Ordinance.

(2) Any member of the board who is appointed by the Minister may be removed from office by the Minister.[1]

(3) Any member of the board who is appointed by the Minister[1] shall, if he leaves Ceylon with the intention of remaining abroad for a period exceeding six months or is absent from more than six consecutive meetings of the board, be deemed to have vacated his office.

(4) Every member of the board who is appointed by the Minister[1] shall, unless he earlier resigns or vacates his office or is removed therefrom, hold office for three years from the date of his appointment, but shall be eligible for reappointment.

(5) The board shall, in the exercise of its powers, the performance of its duties and the discharge of its functions under this Ordinance, be subject to the general direction and control of the Minister. [1]

4.

(1) The board shall be a corporation with perpetual succession and a common seal and with capacity to acquire, hold and dispose of property and to sue and be sued by the name and style of the Board of Indigenous Medicine.

(2) All property which on the date on which this Ordinance comes into operation is vested in or held by any person or persons, for the use or benefit of the College or of the Hospital of Indigenous Medicine in existence at that date, shall with effect from that date be deemed to be vested in the board incorporated by this Ordinance, and shall be administered by the board for the purposes, and in accordance with the provisions, of this Ordinance and the regulations made thereunder.

5.

(1) Every question which comes up for consideration before the board shall be dealt with at a meeting of the board and shall be determined by the majority of the members present and voting.

(2) The president shall preside over every meeting of the board at which he is present. In the absence of the president from any meeting, the members present may choose one of themselves to be chairman of the meeting.

(3) The quorum for any meeting of the board shall be three.

(4) In the event of an equality of votes on any question considered at a meeting of the board, the president or the member acting as chairman shall have a casting vote in addition to his original vote.

(5) Save as herein expressly provided, meetings of the board shall be held at such intervals and conducted according to such procedure, and the business of the board shall be transacted in such manner and subject to such conditions, as may be prescribed.

6.

(1) Every appointment of an officer or servant of any description to the staff of the College and of the Hospital and the Pharmacy, Herbarium and Dispensary attached thereto, shall be made in accordance with the provisions of the Public Service Commission Rules, subject to such modifications as may be made therein by regulations made under this Ordinance ; and for the purposes of the application of the Public Service Commission Rules in each such case, the powers and functions vested by them in the head of a department shall be deemed to be vested in the board.

All officers or servants in the service of the board at any of the aforesaid institutions on the day immediately preceding the date on which this Ordinance comes into operation shall be deemed to be, and to have been from the date on which they were first appointed by the board, public servants for all purposes including the purposes of any scheme for the grant of pensions, retiring allowances or gratuities, or of benefits from any provident fund, to public servants upon the termination of their service under Government.

(2) Subject to such terms and conditions as may be prescribed, the board may, from time to time, make financial or other arrangements for awarding scholarships, exhibitions or prizes by way of reward or assistance to deserving students of the College.

7. It shall be the duty of the board, in accordance with such regulations as may be made in that behalf-

(a) to provide courses of instruction in indigenous medicine to the students admitted to the College ;

(b) to hold the prescribed examinations at the prescribed intervals in the subjects in which instruction is provided ;

(c) to grant diplomas in indigenous medicine to students of the College who have been successful in the prescribed examinations and have fulfilled the prescribed conditions ;

(d) to maintain the Herbarium and the Pharmacy in efficient condition and to ensure an adequate supply of such medicines, medicinal appliances and goods, and medicated articles of food or drink, as may be necessary for the purposes of the Hospital and the Dispensary; and

(e) to provide at the Hospital and the Dispensary all such facilities as may be necessary for the treatment of diseases and for the supply of medicines, medicinal appliances or goods, and medicated articles of food or drink.

8.

(1) The board shall maintain two registers, hereinafter referred to as " the general register " and " the special register" for the registration of practitioners of indigenous medicine.

(2) The board shall enter in the appropriate register the prescribed particulars in respect of each practitioner so registered.

(1) No person shall be entitled to be registered in the general register as a practitioner of indigenous medicine unless- (a) he is the holder of a diploma granted by the board or of a certificate issued on or before the 31st day of December, 1938, by the Ayurvedic Medical Council under the Ayurvedic Medical Council Ordinance ; or (b) he is the holder of a diploma or certificate granted by any college, hospital or other institution in Ceylon or in India which has been declared to be an approved institution for the purposes of this Ordinance by regulation made thereunder ; or (c) he satisfies a committee appointed by the Minister for the purpose, that he possesses sufficient knowledge, experience and skill for the efficient practice of indigenous medicine: Provided that no person referred to in paragraph (c) of this subsection shall be registered unless he makes application in that behalf to the board on or before the 31st day of December, 1952.

(2) No practitioner shall be entitled to be registered in the special register unless he satisfies the board that he possesses a specialized knowledge and sufficient experience and skill in any particular branch of either Ayurveda or Siddha or Unani medicine or surgery.

(3) The board may refuse to register any person, or may remove from a register the name of any person who has been registered under this Ordinance, on the ground- (a) that he has been convicted by a competent court of any offence which shows him to be unfit to be a practitioner of medicine ; (b) that he has been guilty of any misconduct in his professional capacity ; (c) that he has been deprived of any diploma or certificate, issued by an institution or authority other than the board which constituted his qualification to be registered under this Ordinance.

(4) No person shall be entitled to be registered under this Ordinance as a practitioner of indigenous medicine by reason only of the fact that he is, for the purposes of the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, a ' registered vederala' within the meaning of section 42 of that Ordinance.

10.

(1) Every person who is registered under this Ordinance as a practitioner of indigenous medicine shall be entitled to sue for and recover in due course of law, by action in a court or Rural Court of competent jurisdiction in Ceylon, any reasonable sum claimed by him as- (a) fees for any services rendered or advice given or work done in his professional capacity ; (b) charges for any medicines, medicinal preparations or appliances or medicated articles of food or drink, supplied by him ; or (c) expenses incurred by him in connexion with or for the purposes of. the medical treatment of any patient.

(2) No person who is not registered under this Ordinance as a practitioner of indigenous medicine shall be entitled to institute or maintain any action-at-law in any court or Rural Court in Ceylon for the recovery of any fees, charges or expenses of any description referred to in subsection (1).

(3) Any medical certificate or other document, or any opinion or statement issued, given or made as to the state of health of any person by a practitioner of indigenous medicine who is not registered under this Ordinance, shall not be accepted or admitted as evidence for any of the purposes of any proceedings held before or taken by any court or Rural Court in Ceylon.

(4) So much of section 40 of the Medical Ordinance as is inconsistent with the preceding provisions of this section is hereby repealed.

11. Any person who, by the adoption or use of any title or professional designation or in any other manner whatsoever, holds himself out to be the holder of a diploma granted by the board or to be a practitioner of indigenous medicine registered under this Ordinance, when in truth and in fact he is not the holder of such diploma or has not been so registered, shall be guilty of an offence punishable after summary trial before a Magistrate with a fine not exceeding one hundred rupees.

12. Nothing in this Ordinance shall be deemed to declare the practice of any system of indigenous medicine or surgery by any person to be unlawful by reason only of the fact that such person is not the holder of a diploma issued by the board or has not been registered by the board as a practitioner of indigenous medicine.

(1) The board may charge and levy fees and other charges at the prescribed rates for- (a) the enrolment of any person as a student of the College ; (b) the admission of a student to any course of lectures or other instruction ; (c) the admission of a student to the examinations of the College; (d) the grant of a diploma to a student; (e) the inquiry into an application made by any person, other than the holder of a diploma, for registration as a practitioner of indigenous medicine; (f) the registration of any person as a practitioner of indigenous medicine ; (g) the treatment of patients at the Hospital; (h) the medicines, medicinal appliances or medicated articles of food or drink supplied at the Dispensary.

(2) All fees and other charges received or recovered by the board shall be credited to the Consolidated Fund.1

14.

(1) The Minister[1] may make regulations for or in respect of all purposes or matters for which regulations are authorized or required by this Ordinance and all such other regulations as may be necessary for giving effect to the principles and carrying out the provisions of this Ordinance.

(2) No regulation made under this Ordinance shall have effect until it is approved by the Senate and the House of Representatives[1] and notification of such approval is published in the Gazette. Every regulation shall, upon the publication of such notification in respect thereof, be as valid and effectual as if it were herein enacted.

15. In this Ordinance, unless the context otherwise requires-

" board " means the Board of Indigenous Medicine constituted by this Ordinance ;

" College ", " Hospital ", " Pharmacy ", " Herbarium " and " Dispensary " mean the respective institutions in existence on the date on which this Ordinance comes into operation ;

" indigenous medicine" includes the Ayurvedic, Siddha, and Unani systems of medicine and surgery;

" prescribed" means prescribed by regulations made under this Ordinance ;

" regulation" means a regulation made by the Minister.[1]

16. Nothing in this Ordinance shall affect or be deemed to affect the rights of Her Majesty the Queen, Her Heirs and Successors, or of any body politic or corporate or of any other persons except such as are mentioned in this Ordinance and those claiming by from or under them.