The Institute of Trans-Disciplinary Health Sciences and Technology

About The Institute of Trans-Disciplinary Health Sciences and Technology

Trans-Disciplinary University (TDU) is an innovation oriented University which facilitates trans-disciplinary innovation and education. TDU was legislated as an autonomous University by the Karnataka Legislative Assembly (Karnataka Act No 35 of 2013). The Institute of Trans-disciplinary Health Sciences and Technology (IHST) was formally launched in Bangalore on 19th January, 2014. It is India’s First Trans-disciplinary Health University and is engaged in developing a new model for integrated healthcare in India. IHST is the brain child of Sam Pitroda and has been founded by the Foundation for Revitalization of Local Health Traditions (FRLHT) Trust which was also founded by Sam Pitroda along with Darshan Shankar. FRLHT is a public trust and a non-government organization that is based in Bengaluru, India. The trust evolved from 21 years of its pioneering work. Sam Pitroda is a well known personality who laid the foundation for India’s telecommunications and technology revolution of the 1980s. Sam Pitroda is also the chairperson of the university. FRLHT was established in 1990 to document India's herbal plant heritage, preserve genetic pool, and develop traditional medicines. Today, FRLHT has over 200 scientists and professionals on 19-acres campus and has documented over 7,000 herbal medicinal plants. It also has over 100 herbal medicine gardens, approximately 500 acres each.

The Institute of Trans-disciplinary Health Sciences and Technology (ITD-HST) was formerly termed as A-IAM, FRLHT. The institute has been working for around two decades as a voluntary organisation. It has been creating a database of all the medicinal plants available in the country and categorising it in a state wise manner. Till date more than 6500 medicinal plants have been identified and documented. IHST is considered to be the only university in the country that has the authorization to create a bridge between the Indian Shastras or sacred texts and the western biomedical sciences and technology. It seeks to integrate traditional Indian medicine and western medicine to create a new vertical of knowledge in the medicinal field. The university aspires to bring down the gap between the healthcare services available for the wealthy people and the poor people in the country. It plans to focus on the affordability, scalability and sustainability of medicines. The institute intends to create a repository of the vast and varied medicinal herbs available across the country but are still not known to the people due to the lack of scientific data or evidence. Unlike conventional universities, TDU gives equal importance to research, education and translation, outreach, application of knowledge for societal change. The research programmes is available for the students belonging to the disciplines of life sciences and physical sciences, Ayurveda and bio-medical sciences from all over the country.

Location of Trans-Disciplinary University

Located at the Foundation for Revitalisation of Local Health Traditions campus at Yelahanaka in the city's northern suburb

TDU Schools

1. SCNR - School of Conservation of Natural Resources promotes research, education and outreach related to the conservation of medicinal flora, fauna, metals and minerals. Conservation and Augmentation of medicinal plant resources has been the focal domain of the School and pursued by three strategic dimensions – Conservation Action, Repository and Informatics on Medicinal Resources.

The school houses four groups that include:

• CNR - Conservation Group
• RMR - Repository of Medical Resources
• HGL - Herbal Gardening and Landscaping Services
• Indian System of Medicine Informatics and Theoretical Foundation Group

2. School of Health Sciences – It is a research school involved in Trans-disciplinary healthcare education, research and in the delivery of high quality integrative patient care.

The school houses the following Groups:

• Institute of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine (I-AIM) – The University Hospital
• Clinical Research Group
• Local Health Traditions Group
• Ethno-veterinary Group
• Education Innovation Group

3. School of Life Sciences - The School of Life Sciences is involved in interpreting the sophisticated, systemic theoretical foundations, concepts and practices of Ayurveda in terms of the structural theories of modern science. This is a complex long-term task. Thus, it works for bridging Shastra and Science.

The School has the following thrust areas:

• Safe drinking water
• Rasayana and metabolism
• Anemia
• Neuro-degeneration
• Nutraceutical and Wellness Products
• Quality standards based on Reverse Pharmacognosy
• Drug development

Facilities at Trans-Disciplinary University

Hostel - TDU has a well-furnished hostel facility within the campus for resident students. The campus has rare medicinal plants in its compound. There are separate wings for boys and girls and there is special accommodation for families in double rooms. There is also canteen facility available at the campus.

Some of the other facilities are:

• Fully furnished rooms with beds, wardrobes, tables and chairs
• Rooms with attached bathroom
• 24-hour water, hot water and power supply
• WiFi connectivity
• TV viewing facility is available in the common hall for both boys and girls separately.
• For sports, facilities are available for both Indoor and outdoor games like Carom, Badminton, Chess, and Table Tennis

Indian Medical Heritage Library - The Indian Medical Heritage Library is involved in documentation and preserving the historical information on India’s rich medical heritage.The Heritage collection focuses on Medical heritage related material such as photographs, formulation documents, slides, medicinal plant genealogies, books, manuscripts, yearbooks, botanical maps, and other traditional medicine related ephemera. The library accepts relevant ancient folk records, medical diaries, photographs of scriptures, books, maps or other items which would enhance the Heritage Collection.

Study Abroad Program - The Study Abroad Program is a major global initiative of the School aimed at orienting international medical students in US, EU and Australia on the basics and strengths of complimentary and alternative medicine. The Education Innovation Group in the School of Health Sciences also conducts programs on Panchakarma, Herbal Home Remedies, Use of Medicinal Plants in Primary Healthcare, Understanding the Fundamentals of Ayurveda, Nutrition & Diet for a healthy living, Personal Lifestyle Management etc.