Wild Medicinal Plants of South 24 Parganas District, West Bengal, India

Abstract

The present study deals with the observation, identification and documentation of medicinal uses of wild plants by the inhabitants of villages in the blocks of South 24 Parganas district, West Bengal. The various medicinal plants are used by the local communities of the study area to treat a variety of health-related challenges and heal different pains and ailments. The study is therefore, undertaken from April 2017 to October 2019, to gather the knowledge and create a record related to important and unexplored wild medicinal plants used by the local population. Data were collected by interviewing local inhabitants or knowledgeable persons and medicine men with the help of a semi-structured and open-ended questionnaire. It provides a comprehensive account of 64 wild medicinal plant species with their botanical name, family, vernacular name(s), parts used and uses. The plant species belonging to 60 different genera and 34 different families were enlisted and found to be used in effective therapies. Among the identified plant species, most belong to the dicotyledonous families. It is observed that out of the surveyed species, 53%, 31%, 11%, 3% and 2% are herbs, trees, shrubs, climbers, and creepers, respectively. The study showed that the area is rich in curative flora. The plants and their parts are used in the treatment of numerous diseases like bronchitis, cut, wound, asthma, jaundice, headache, fever, ear and skin diseases, snake bites, dog bites, vomiting, stomach problems, etc. In this study, 8 species of the family Fabaceae were recorded and it is reported to be the most dominant one. It was found that many diseases are cured by multiple plants, e.g., asthma can be cured by Vachellia nilotica, Boerhaavia diffusa, Calotropis procera, Datura metel, Ficus religiosa, Solanum torvum; burns/boils can be cured by V. nilotica, C. gigantea, F. benghalensis. Sometimes, a single plant is used for curing multiple diseases e.g., B. diffusa can cure abscess, anemia, asthma, cough and cold. Bioassay of all these preparations should be approved for further scientific validation. In West Bengal, the uses of all wild plant taxa have not yet been recorded. The study recommends growing these plants under organized agriculture, as crops, for large scale production, utilization in daily meals in the form of various delicacies and creating awareness meant for conservation and hence, ensuring food and health security for the local growing population.