Bangalore, Sep 4 (IANS): Noted Indian homeopath Mukesh Batra has been honoured with Asia's "most promising leader" award at a recent function in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for pioneering work in healthcare, using natural medicine.

Dubai's Global Village chief executive Saeed Ali Bin Redha presented the award to Batra at Asia's most promising brands 2012-13 on Aug 26, in the presence of about 300 leaders from 18 Asian countries, representing diverse sectors.

An international jury headed by management guru Malcolm McDonald and validated by global consulting firm KPMG selected Batra, who founded Positive Health Clinic in 1982 in Mumbai and expanded across India, the Gulf region and Britain since then.

Homeopathy, first developed in the 19th century by German physician Samuel Hahnemann, is a system of medicine used widely across India for treating common diseases. Diluted natural substances in pellet form are used in treatment on the principle that "like cures like".

"The award is a measure of recognition to homeopathy, which the World Health Organisation (WHO) considers the second-largest medical system, growing at 25 percent annually over the past five years," Batra said in a statement here Wednesday.

The jury also ranked Batra's clinic among the top 200 brands in Asia, along with other Indian firms such as Ambuja Cement, Tata, Godrej, Mahindra and Fortis Healthcare.

"To popularise homeopathy and educate the people on its benefits without side-effects, we provide free treatment to about 20,000 patients through our foundation in 56 cities across the country," Batra said.

The Batra Foundation also extends care to animal welfare shelters, orphanages and old age homes.

In 2009, Batra's firm introduced aesthetic services spanning hair transplant, curing obesity and skincare.

Batra's cyber clinic offers online consultation to over 4.5 lakh patients every year.