Ramdev and Narendra Modi at a yoga event in Delhi in 2014. | Adnan Abidi/Reuters
Earlier this month, the Ayush ministry offered detailed advice on how to build one’s immunity during the “Covid-19 Crisis”. To help ward off the dreaded disease, the ministry listed a series of specific recommendations, including, “Apply Sesame oil/Coconut oil/Cow Ghee... in both the nostrils in morning and evening.”
However, if one didn’t like putting stuff in one’s nose, the ministry offered an alternative: “Take 1 table spoon sesame oil or coconut oil in the mouth. Do not drink, swish in the mouth for 2 to 3 minutes and spit it off followed by warm water rinse [sic]”.