Traditional Healthcare Uses of Wild Plants Prevalent in Haldwani Forest Area, Central Himalaya

Abstract

ABSTRACT
The Haldwani forest division lies in the lower foothills of Central Himalayas in Uttarkhand state and covers an area of 1140 sq. km. The division represents a wide range of altitude, slopes, drainage and soils giving rise to a variety of forest types from tropical semi-evergreen to moist temperate. The hilly people from high altitude come down with their families and with their livestock during November-December. The tribals, viz., Doliyas from Nepal and Bhotias from higher regions, Gothias and Tharus are inhabitants of this division. They use a wide variety of local floras for alleviating their common ailments and diseases. The objectives of the study are folklore survey, collection, identification and documentation of plants and bulk collection for phytochemical and pharmacological screening. For this purpose, ethnobotanical survey of various villages was conducted during the year 2001 for recording first-hand information on the utilization of plants used by local inhabitants/tribals. During the survey, interviews were also taken from old and experienced medicine men for gathering ethnobotanical uses of the plants. The paper highlights the ethnomedicinal uses of 45 plants used by local people, e.g., Cassia fistula L. for bowels, Costus speciosus (Koen.) Sm. for cold, Cisampelos pareira L. for cattle diarrhoea, Dioscorea bulbifera L. for indigestion, Shorea robusta Gaertn. f. and Tridax procumbens L. for cuts and wounds, etc.
Keywords: Folklore, medicinal plants, Haldwani, traditional healthcare system, Uttarakhand