Hub for medicinal plants in Hills soon

Amitava Banerjee, HT, 1 Nov 2016, DARJEELING: Darjeeling has a rich tradition of the use of indigenous medicinal plants. But this has not been researched into or documented.

Taking up this important task, the Darjeeling Society of Education Research and Development (DSERD) will establish a facilitation centre for medicinal plants in the Hills. The organisation will approach state government for the purpose.

“There are more than 15,000 species of flora found in the Hills and out of which 5,000 species have been identified as medicinal plants. Several species are being used by pharmaceutical companies for manufacture of medicines while others are being used by local herbalists. The indigenous people of this region have a very sound knowledge of these plants,” said GS Yonzon, director, DSERD.

Medicinal plants like the cinchona, chirata, ipecac, rauwolfia, dioscorea, digitalis and oroxylum are found abundantly in the Hills and are used by pharmaceutical companies.

“Through scientific cultivation, conservation, judicious utilisation, trade and both domestic and international market links, medicinal plants can provide livelihood to thousands of people here,” said Yonzon.

Taking all these aspects into consideration, the DSERD has plans to start the medicinal plant and education centre in the Hills which will also provide research facilities. DSERD is an NGO and was established in 2010.

“No serious institutional steps have been taken till now to explore, identify and utilise the medicinal plant potential. There is limitless scope in this avenue. Along with the setting up of the facilitation centre, general awareness and a plan for deriving benefits both long term and short term need to be drawn up. In this direction, we will hold a workshop on cultivation, utilization, conservation and marketing of medicinal plants for farmers of the Darjeeling Hills,” said Yonzon.

The workshop will be held on November 7 at the directorate of cinchona and other medicinal plants premises in Mongpu, Darjeeling. It is being organised by the DSERD along with the directorate of cinchona and other plants.

A similar workshop was organised on May 23, 2015, in Kalimpong.

“After the last workshop in Kalimpong, a medicinal plants promotion committee has been constituted. We have also initiated the process of establishing a crude drug extraction centre with the help of Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow,” said the director.