Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated the first ever All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) and said his government was focusing on integrating the public healthcare system with ayurveda and yoga.

"Ayurveda is not just a method of treatment. It encompasses social health, public health and environmental health," Modi said while inaugurating the institute set up on the lines of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).

"Understanding this need, our government is stressing on integrating the public healthcare system with yoga, ayurveda and other AYUSH methods."

It is critical for ayurveda's expansion that there is a hospital linked with it in every district which offers quality healthcare services, the Prime Minister said.

"AYUSH Ministry is swiftly working in that direction and in just three years, over 65 AYUSH hospitals have been set up," he added.

Modi said no country can progress if it forgets how to take pride in its heritage.

He said attempts were made during the British rule to weaken India's traditional methods, including that of medicine, farming and science.

"But in the last three years, the situation has been reversed to a large extent," Modi said. "Our heritage, which is superior, is being established in the minds of the people."