Conservation and Utilization of High-Altitude Threatened Medicinal Plants

Abstract

The Himalayan region is bestowed with unique flora found nowhere on the earth. The Indian Himalayas are complex and dynamic ecosystems nurturing approximately 8644 plant species. Among these, medicinal plants are predominant floral wealth of Himalayas with almost 1748 of species being utilized for curing diseases since time immemorial. These medicinal plants have enormous national and international demand as raw material leading to their illegal and unscientific harvesting at large scale from the wild in the absence of regulated cultivation practices. Almost 90% of the raw material of these herbs used in the pharmaceutical industries is collected from the wild, out of which 70% is destructively harvested. The demand for these high-value Himalayan medicinal and aromatic Plants (MAPs) is increasing every year despite of their low availability because of the multiple medicinal value of these herbs. These medicinal plants form part of Indian economy, are source of livelihood for local inhabitants, and also form part of local healthcare. Presently, most of the medicinal plants of Himalaya are in peril owing to large-scale illegal and unscientific harvesting, habitat destruction, lack of sufficient knowledge of their ecology and biology, and limited research and development initiatives. About 120 species of Himalayan medicinal plants are under various threat categories, according to International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Preventing extinction and sustainable utilization of these medicinal plants needs collaborative efforts by both government and researchers by restricting their harvest, reintroduction of species in their natural habitat, for development of in situ and ex situ conservation strategies, and developing techniques for scientific harvesting of these species. At national and international level, efforts made for conservation of Himalayan herbs by various government agencies, and nongovernmental organizations are also gearing up slowly, but immediate attention and serious efforts are needed to preserve these therapeutic agents for future use and for sustenance of the Himalayan ecosystem.