Status of the medicinal plants in Tharawada-GandherrnReserve Forest of Kachchh, Gujarat and the ethnomedicinalrnpractices of local community

Abstract

Since few decades, the awareness on the utilization of traditional medicinal system to cure various diseases/disorderrngained significant importance in human being. The revival of traditional knowledge on medicinal plants is importantrnfor medicinal practices in rural areas. In the mean time, the population of medicinal plant species are also depletingrnin rapid pace. Therefore, an attempt was made to understand the status of medicinal plants, their uses and thernassociated traditional knowledge of villagers in TGRF area. A total of 28 medicinal plant species recorded in thernarea. Some important medicinal plants like Enicostema axillare, Cynadon dactylon, Commiphora wightii, Capparisrndecidua etc. are also recorded from the area which is traditionally used by local people from a long time. It was alsornfound that, 26 types of health problem cured by the recorded 28 species of medicinal plants by traditional medicinalrnpractices. Among the recorded medicinal plants most of them are herbaceous in nature. The study concluded thatrnTGRF is one of the important areas for medicinal plants and local people have rich knowledge on traditionalrnmedicinal practices which need to be conserving for future.