Traditional remedies in Tarai region of Kumaun, Uttarakhand

Abstract

A floristic survey of ethnomedicinal plants was conducted in the Tarai region of Kumaun, Uttarakhand. The study was conducted during 2008 to 2011 to assess the traditional uses of plant resources of this area. The study area was divided in three sites and eight communities and the study was conducted through extensive and intensive explorations during different seasons (i.e., summer, rainy, winter and spring) of the year. A total of 41 Angiospermic plants species belonging to 27 families being used for traditional remedies are reported. Details of plant parts, methods of preparation and mode of utilization are also presented. The information on traditional knowledge was gathered through exhaustive interviews with local people as well as migrants of distant places of different gender and class settled in the area. Although people of<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"> </i>Tarai region used these plant species for 45 traditional remedies for a long time on trial and error basis, further research and scientific examination is recommended for these traditional remedies.