The three pillars of an ideal Ayurvedic /herbal drug and their rational use are quality, safety and efficacy. They should be readily available, accessible and reasonably priced. Safety means that the drug should not present a “significant or unreasonable risk of illness or injury” and the products must have toxicity clearance unless traditionally used for long periods without side effects. Efficacy of health care products is measured by clinical evaluation. Quality has to be built into the final product starting from the raw materials to the finished product. Hence quality must be assured from the selection of propagation material to the final product and up to the time of use. Quality control needs development of specifications for standardization of raw materials, extracts and finished products. It is necessary to establish consistency and reproducibility of a particular extract to ensure guaranteed potency through acceptable levels of active compounds and this process can be carried out chemically, spectroscopically or biologically and currently involves complicated and complex procedures. Standardization is also necessary to implement quality assurance, ensure uniformity of dosage, check stability/expiration dating, detect substandard or adulterated drugs and contaminant. For total quality control of a Ayurvedic/ herbal drug the following practices are have to be followed.