Author

DHARM NARAYAN AND PRAMOD KUMAR SINGH*

1Department of Botany, Udai Pratap Autonomous College, Varanasi-221002

Abstract

Indigenous knowledge and its conservation are vital for the development of new drugs. The ethnic people mainly (Kharvar, Baiga & Polekero) of the Vindhya region have great traditional knowledge on plants and plant parts to cure their maximum health problems. The present study was conducted during 2015-2017 in three seasons annually of study sites. Ethnobotanical data were collected by semi-structural interviews with ethnic people of the study area namely plant part used, traditional knowledge about dose preparation, route of adminisration and distribution pattern of medicinal plants. We reported medicinal properties of 21 plant species on the basis of three different ethnic groups and folk-medicine man for the treatment of various human ailments. Field observation and local medicine man revealed that decoction prepared by low temperature was most effective to treat human ailments. The use of some rare medicinal plants was very high as traditional remedies such as Acorus calamus. Celastrus paniculatus, Curculigo orchioides Hemidesmus indicus, Plumbago zeylanica and Withania somnifera. Curculigo orchioides is cited critically endangered and maximally utilized plant species in day to day life of tribal peoples. Careful and systematic screening of compounds present in the medicinal plants used by ethnic people could possibly provide novel medicines to treat life threatening human diseases. We recommend prioritization of medicinal plants and reinforcement of existing cultivation practices for sustainable management of highpriority species of traditional medicine and its conservation.

Keyword: - Vindhya region, Sonebhadra, Endangered medicinal Plants, Traditional Knowledge

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