Fact Check: Patanjali's 'Coronil' has not received approval from WHO -- here's proof

World Health Organisation (WHO), as well as Patanjali, have clarified that WHO has not given any certificate or validation to 'Coronil' or any other traditional medicine for the treatment of the Coronavirus disease. This news comes amidst the rumours that Coronil received certification from the WHO.

Recently, Baba Ramdev's Coronil received a CoPP license by DCGI, "in accordance with the WHO GMP quality approvals". It is noteworthy that the CoPP certificate is a certificate that is granted in "the format prescribed by WHO" and not "by WHO".

The clarification tweet from WHO's official handle reads, "WHO has not reviewed or certified the effectiveness of any traditional medicine for the treatment #COVID19," the global health body said in a tweet on Friday without naming Patanjali and Coronil as drugs cleared for treatment."

Also, Balkrishna Acharya of Patanjali tweeted that, "We want to clarify to avoid confusion that our WHO GMP compliant COPP certificate to Coronil is issued by DCGI, Government of India. It is clear that WHO do not approve or disapprove any drugs. WHO works for building a better, healthier future for people all over the world"

In a misleading headline as well as a tweet, Journalist and Editor-in-Chief of India TV, Rajat Sharma wrote that "As second wave of Covid pandemic looms, Ramdev's Coronil gains acceptance from WHO". The tweet has been removed by Twitter for violating Twitter rules. Several other media outlets including News Nation and News18 have also given out this fake news. Enraged at the misleading tweet, people are asking Rajat Sharma and the said news channels to apologise for the fake news.

Ever since it's launch in June 2020, Patanjali has repeatedly claimed that Coronil is effective in the treatment the Coronavirus disease. However, it has attracted a lot of criticism due to the lack of scientific evidence. Patanjali's website simply calls Coronil an "immunity booster' and the Ayush Ministry recognises it as a "supporting measure in Covid-19".