Abstract
The present investigation is an attempt to study the uses of ethnomedicinal plants in traditional knowledge system among the Assamese community of Dibrugarh District in Assam. All the relevant data were collected during 2017–2019 by following standard ethnobotanical methods through personal interviews as well as through focus group discussions with a total of 193 informants including 62 men and 131 women. The use value (UV) of the medicinal plants and informant consensus factors (FIC) values were determined. In the study 174 ethnomedicinal plant species were documented belonging to 147 genera and 78 families. Except for three species, the 171 species are Angiosperms mostly collected from the wild. Among the 174 species of medicinal plants, 12 species are listed under various categories by IUCN and CITES. All these plants are used to treat various diseases that are grouped under 13 ICPC (International Classification of Primary Care) disease categories, with the highest use value (0.54) recorded in Leucas aspera followed by Paederia scandens with (0.5) use value. This confirms that these plants are important traditional herbs with potent medicinal uses. The highest informant consensus factor with the highest number of species (93) being used for the digestive system (FIC= 0.76%), followed by oral and dentistry (FIC= 0.73%) category. The ethnic communities in the district are rich in traditional knowledge which is evident from the use records and high degree of consensus among the informants.
Highlights
Indigenous knowledge plays a vital role in conservation of resources, of indigenous plant species significant for indigenous communities (Cox 2000; Leonti 2002; Leonti 2011; Kayani et al 2015)
An overview of medicinal plants In the present research work 174 plant species were used in various traditional health care practices which belong to 78 families and 147 genera
The present investigation represents an array of information about the rich indigenous knowledge of traditional medicine and ethnobotanical potential of the various plants used by the tribal people of Dibrugarh District
Summary
Indigenous knowledge plays a vital role in conservation of resources, of indigenous plant species significant for indigenous communities (Cox 2000; Leonti 2002; Leonti 2011; Kayani et al 2015). The indigenous communities have been harvesting ethnomedicinal plants from the wild in different parts of the world (Malick & Cox 1996; Dhillion et al.2002; Matu & Staden 2003; Mall et al.2015; Pasquini et al.2018; Phumthum & Balslev 2018; Tomasini et al 2019; Dixit & Tiwari 2020; Qamariah et al 2020) and the knowledge is carried forward generation after generation (Tabuti et al 2003) This knowledge needs to be conserved especially in countries facing high risk of threat to biodiversity due to urban developmental activities, migrations, deforestation, and natural calamities. Due to certain factors like modern lifestyle and development in medical facilities, the utilization of these plants is rapidly decreasing To overcome this issue, proper documentation and assessment of traditional knowledge of indigenous people is important (Teklehaymanot 2009). The present survey was conducted with the objectives (1) to document the medicinal plants used by the Assamese community in Dibrugarh District, (2) proper assessment of traditional knowledge on the ethnomedicinal plants adopted by the people with regard to gender, age, and knowledge, and (3) to bring out the medicinal plants with highest ethnomedicinal importance for future value addition to their existence and preservation for long term purposes
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