The Report of the Committee on Indigenous Systems of Medicine, Madras (1923), commissioned by the Madras government in 1921, was the first major health report to be published in India. It is commonly referred to as the Usman Report, after the committee’s chairman Muhammad Usman. Its main purpose was to provide indigenous practitioners with an opportunity to put forward a strong case for state encouragement and financial support.
The second volume of the Usman Report, titled “Written and Oral Evidence,” mainly consists in written responses to a questionnaire relating to theoretical, practical, economic and institutional dimensions of medical practice. Practitioners’ testimonies came from all over India and were submitted in English, Sanskrit, Urdu, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannaḍa, and Oriya, providing a snapshot of the practices and sociopolitical positionings significant for those practicing traditional medicines in India at the beginning of the twentieth century.
This volume provides the first English translation of the vernacular testimonies of this important document.
Reviews
Sarah Qidwai. “Book Review: Dagmar Wujastyk and Christèle Barois (eds.), The Usman Report (1923): Translations of Regional Submissions.” History of Science in South Asia, 11 (2023): 5–7. DOI: 10.18732/hssa104.
Introduction to The Usman Report (1923):
Translations of Regional Submissions IX
Editors and translators XXXIII
USMAN REPORT, VOL. 2, PP. 1-108
Testimonies from outside the Presidency of Madras written in English 1
This section of the report contains twenty-six reports from outside the Presidency of Madras, all written in English in the original and therefore not included here.
USMAN REPORT, VOL. 2, PP. 109-162
Testimonies from outside the Presidency of Madras written in Sanskrit 3
109-131 JAIPUR-RAJPUTANA: Shrijut Vaidyaratna Swami Pandit Lakshmi Ramaswami Acharya 5
131-135 BOMBAY:Vaidya Panchanana Krishna Shastri Kavde 43
136-144 COCHIN: M. R. Ry. Vasudeva Nambeesan Avargal 57
144-147 UNITED PROVINCES: Pandit Shivaram Pande, Allahabad 73
147-161 BOMBAY: The Ahmedabad Vaidya Sabha, through Vaidya Narayan Shanker Devshanker and Others 83
USMAN REPORT, VOL. 2, PP. 163-214
Testimonies from outside the Presidency of Madras written in Urdu 113
163-165 MADRAS: Hakim Muhammad Ghaus 115
165-177 MYSORE: Janab Hakim Syed Mustafa Sahib Bahadur 121
177-192 LAHORE: Janab Pandit Vaid
Thakur Datt Sharma Saheb Bahadur 145
192-198 LAHORE: From Pandit Vaid Bihari Lal Jhingan Sahib Bahadur 169
198-214 HYDERABAD DECCAN: Janab Hakim Hari Govind Sahib Bahadur Vaid 183
USMAN REPORT, VOL. 2, PP. 215-272
Testimonies from the Presidency of Madras written in English 209
This section of the report contains sixteen reports from the Presidency of Madras, all written in English in the original and therefore not included here.
USMAN REPORT, VOL. 2, PP. 273-324
Testimonies from the Presidency of Madras written in Sanskrit 211
273-284 M.R.Ry. Ayurveda Bhushana M.V. Sastri Avargal 213
284-295 M. R. RY. Ayurveda Bhushana K. Subrahmanya Sastri Avargal 239
295-304 M. R. Ry. Ayurvedacharya N. Madhava Menon Avargal, M. R. Ry. Ayurveda Bhushana K. Subrahmanya Sastri Avargal, M. R. Ry. Ayurveda Bhushana K. A. Venkatachala Sastri Avargal, M. R. Ry. Ayurveda Bhushana G. Bhanu Vaidyar Avargal, and M. R. Ry. Ayurveda Bhushana P. Somasundara Devar Avargal 261
305-309 M. R. Ry. Ayurvedaratnam K. Seshasastri Avargal – Sringeri 281
310-324 M. R. Ry. Ayurveda Bhushana Pandit M. Duraiswami Ayyangar Avargal 295
USMAN REPORT, VOL. 2, PP. 325-409
Testimonies from the Presidency of Madras written in Tamil 323
325-329 M. R. Ry. Vaidyapathi G. Sigamani Pandithar Avargal 325
330-340 M. R. Ry. Swami Virudai Sivagnanayogigal Avargal, Kovilpatti 341
340-341 M. R. Ry. Pandit Shanmuganandaswami Avargal 371
342-354 M. R. Ry. K. A. Venkatachala Shastriar Avargal, Vaidya Vesharada, and M. R. Ry. G. Subrahmanya Sarma, Eliyurkar Avargal, Vaidya Thirtha 379
354-366 M. R. Ry. Pandit V. Ponnuswami Pillai Avargal, Kumbakonam 405
366-370 M. R. Ry. Pandit R. M. K. Veluswami Pillai Avargal 427
370-372 M. R. Ry. Pandit N. Veeraraghavaperumal Pillai Avargal 437
372-386 M. R. Ry. Vaidya Ashraya S. R. V. Das Avargal 443
387-394 M. R. Ry. Vaidyapathi S. Palvannam Mudaliyar Avargal 469
394-409 M. R. Ry. S. V. Vajapeyulu Avargal, H.L.M.S. 487
USMAN REPORT, VOL. 2, PP. 410-411
Testimonies from the Presidency of Madras written in Telugu 513
410-411 M. R. Ry. K. Veeraswamy Naidu Garu 515
USMAN REPORT, VOL. 2, PP. 412-415
Testimonies from the Presidency of Madras written in Malayalam 523
412-415 Honorable Brahmashri E. T. Divakaran Mooss 525
USMAN REPORT, VOL. 2, PP. 416-422
Testimonies from the Presidency of Madras written in Kanarese (Kannaḍa) 535
416-422 M. R. Ry. A. Subbaraya Pandit Avargal 537
USMAN REPORT, VOL. 2, PP. 423-429
Testimonies from the Presidency of Madras written in Oriya 553
423-429 Honorable Kaviraja Kamakshi Prasad Sharma Mahasayo 555
