The National Integrated Medical Association (NIMA) is an Indian non-governmental organization established in 1948. Integrated medical education was started nearly 75 years ago, and though the graduates coming out of these courses proved very successful practitioners ideal for the conditions of this country, the vested interests from both modern medical and pure Ayurved camps, misguided the authorities and created various problems for integrated practitioners from the very beginning. Gradually the integrated medical community started organising itself to face the problems in an organised manner.

All India Conference

The first major attempt was of the establishment of National Medical Association of India in 1948, which soon spread its activities in northern states of the country. From 1953 onwards other Associations of Integrated practitioners were established in the states of Bombay,Mysore, and Madras, etc., with the names as Bombay State Integrated Medical Association (later Maharashtra State Integrated Medical Association and Gujrat State Integrated Medical Association), Integrated Associations of Mysore, etc. The attempt to bring all these associations together, materialised in 1966 at 5th AIC of NIMA Conference under the Presidentship of Dr Panna Lal Varshney and at the 7th All India Conference of NIMA held at Bhopal on 1.2.1969 the Constitution of the National Integrated Medical Association was adopted and thus NIMA was born.

First meeting

The first meeting of the NIMA Central Council was held at Delhi on 6.4.1969 which elected Dr P.N.Awasthi (Bombay) as the president and Dr.K.S.Potdar (Delhi) as the General Secretary of NIMA.

Registration

The Association was registered under the societies Registration Act and Public Trust Act in 1971.

Branches

Today NIMA is the only all India organisation of the institutionally trained and qualified practitioners of Indian Systems of Medicine, who have undergone the conjoint study of Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha and modern ("Western") medicine, for a period of at least four years after Inter Science or XIIth std (10 + 2 years education). The Association has well organised branches in 17 states and in union territories of Delhi and Chandigarh.

Branches

The Association has a three tier system in its working

1. Local/District Branch.
2. State Branches/Territorial Branches.
3. Central Council.
1. Minimum 11 eligible integrated practitioners from any town/city/area can come together and function locally as per the Constitution of NIMA.
2. All Local/District Branches in a state form a State Branch of NIMA, which is governed by its state council. Local Branch Managing Committees send their representatives in proportion to the number of their members to the State Council. The State Council meets twice a year, elect its Office Bearers and carries out its duties for the entire State. The details regarding the working of the Local/District Branch and State Branches can be seen in the booklet of By-Laws of NIMA.
3. The Central Council is formed by the representatives coming from all the State Councils every year. In proportion to their membership strength. The state Secretary is necessarily the first representative of the State Branch on the Central Council. The Central Council is the important body in which are vested the general control, management and direction of policy of the Association.

The central council in its annual meeting elects the Central Office bearers who form the Executive Committee of NIMA which executes the programme laid down by the Central Council.

Membership

To bring financial stability and to have labour of workers on enrolments of annual members, the Association has laid stress on enrolling maximim life members. The life membership subscription is kept in long term fixed deposit in a Nationalised Bank and the annual interest accrued on it is distributed. The Association has opened Associate Membership for non integrated qualified practitioners who believe in integration. The Association year for Branches is from 1 October to 30 September.