High in the hills of Pauri Garhwal, a quiet village turned into the centre of India’s Ayurveda conversation this week. The first ever Herbal Kumbh, a three-day fair built around medicinal plants and herbal farming, reaches its closing day today at Dhanvantari Dham in Malagram, and the organisers say the gathering has already done what it set out to do.
Spread across nearly 200 acres of Himalayan land, the event brought together farmers, researchers, students and entrepreneurs from November 4 to 6, 2026. Around 60 to 70 stalls displayed medicinal herbs, high-value crops, natural farming methods and farm equipment, turning a remote forest clearing into a working showcase of what herbal agriculture can look like in the hills.
A fair with a new name
The event carries three names, and each one says something about its ambition. It is the Herbal Kumbh, the Jadi-Buti Krishi Mela (medicinal plants agriculture fair) and the Dhanvantari Mahotsav, named after Dhanvantari, the deity associated with Ayurveda. It is hosted at Herbal World Himalaya, the Shri Dhanvantari Dham complex being developed in Malagram village of the Yamkeshwar block.
According to Dr Vedpriya Arya, senior scientist and head of the herbal division at the Patanjali Research Institute, the term Herbal Kumbh is being used for the first time. The idea, she said, is to promote herbs and push innovation and research in a field that has long relied on traditional knowledge passed down through generations.
The fair is organised by Herbal World Himalaya, an organisation associated with Patanjali, under the guidance of Swami Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna, the vice-chancellor of Patanjali University. The three-day programme opened on November 4 with a morning yajna, followed by a formal inauguration at 10 am.
What visitors saw across the three days
The Dhanvantari Dham complex is being developed for the conservation of medicinal, aromatic and fruit-bearing plants, alongside research, study and tourism facilities. The fair’s stalls covered the full chain, from seeds and saplings to finished herbal products, with demonstrations of natural and organic farming methods and displays of agricultural equipment suited to hill terrain.
Four publications were released at the opening, including the Patanjali Kisan Diary and a Herbal Kumbh training booklet, aimed at giving farmers practical, take-home guidance on growing and marketing medicinal crops.
Uttarakhand cabinet minister Dr Dhan Singh Rawat was the chief guest on the opening day and praised the scale of development carried out in what was, until recently, a remote forest region. On the second day, agriculture minister Ganesh Joshi, rural development and MSME minister Bharat Chaudhary and Badri-Kedar Temple Committee president Hemant Dwivedi visited the venue, toured the complex and viewed the statue of Lord Dhanvantari at its centre.
The bigger pitch: a global Ayurveda hub
Acharya Balkrishna used the fair to lay out a long-term vision for the site. He said Dhanvantari Dham has been envisioned as a place where India’s knowledge traditions, biodiversity and natural resources can connect with people across the world, and that it could gain international recognition within five years as a centre for medicinal plants, Ayurveda, research, Indian culture and spiritual tourism.
He also said medicinal farming could create livelihoods in hill communities and help address migration by giving local families an economic reason to stay. The state government, meanwhile, is working toward developing Uttarakhand into a Herbal State, a vision Ganesh Joshi said Patanjali’s efforts could play a pivotal role in realising.
Speaking on the second day, Balkrishna said the Herbal Kumbh had already succeeded in its objectives, and Dwivedi added that a time will come when people from across the world travel to visit Shri Dhanvantari Dham.
What happens next
The fair does not end as a one-off. Balkrishna announced that the Herbal Kumbh will become an annual gathering, with the next edition scheduled for October 25 to 27, 2027, again at Dhanvantari Dham. The closing day today features the Dhanvantari Mahotsav and the formal closing ceremony.
For the farmers who travelled to Malagram this week, the test will be what follows the speeches and stalls: whether the training, the market links and the research partnerships promised at the fair turn into steady income from the herbs growing on their own land. That is the part the next edition, a year from now, will be judged on.
FAQs
What is the Herbal Kumbh 2026?
It is a three-day fair on medicinal plants and herbal agriculture, held from November 4 to 6, 2026, combining the Herbal Kumbh, the Jadi-Buti Krishi Mela and the Dhanvantari Mahotsav.
Where is the Herbal Kumbh being held?
At Herbal World Himalaya, Shri Dhanvantari Dham in Malagram village, Yamkeshwar block of Pauri Garhwal district, Uttarakhand, a complex spread across nearly 200 acres.
Who organised the event?
Herbal World Himalaya, an organisation associated with Patanjali, under the guidance of Swami Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna of Patanjali University.
How many stalls are at the fair?
Around 60 to 70 stalls display medicinal herbs, high-value crops, natural and organic farming methods, agricultural equipment and traditional products.
Will the Herbal Kumbh happen again?
Yes. The organisers have announced it will be an annual event, with the next edition scheduled for October 25 to 27, 2027, at the same venue.
The first Herbal Kumbh closes today, but its organisers say the work it started, connecting Himalayan farmers to the wider world of Ayurveda, is only beginning.
