Survey and their conservation measures on medicinal plants of soar valley, Pithoragarh, Uttrakhand

Abstract

The western Himalayas are famous for its rich medicinal and aromatic plant biodiversity and also known as treasure of medicinal and aromatic plants. Nowadays, due to increasing awareness towards herbal products there is tremendous pressure on Himalayan medicinal plants. the natural environment of this region has been affected to a great extent due to overgrazing, cultivation in slopes, sub marginal lands, ruination of forest, change in weather pattern and unplanned developmental activities. the indiscriminate and over-exploitation have severely disturbed the ecological balance. Survey on the medicinal and aromatic plants has been undertaken in different adjacent villages of Soar valley Pithoragarh and other nearby areas. The Medicinal Plants were collected on the basis of literature and folklore information, there proper herbarium of collected plants was prepared and identification was undertaken from authentic sources. The unscientific, over and irregular exploitation of medicinal plants of Soar valley has resulted in very fast depletion as well as extinction of some important medicinal plant species. The threat of extinction can be reduced by developing their agro-technology, adopting scientific methods of collection, in-situ and ex-situ conservation. the aim of this survey is to create awareness among local people about this depleting valuable herbal heritage and to motivate them for its conservation.