Ethnobotanical Survey of Medicinal Plants used by Malayali Tribes in Palamalai Hills Salem District, Tamil Nadu, India

Author: Ranjani N., Kannan R., Kokila D. and Bhuvaneswari V.

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Abstract

An ethnobotanical survey was carried out among the tribes of Palamalai hills Salem district, Eastern ghats of Tamil Nadu. The traditional healers used native herbal plants for various medicinal purposes with their indigenous knowledge. The information was collected from the people through face-to-face interviews during field trips. The documentation of important medicinal plants used for the treatment of various ailments occurs in their daily life. In this present collection 96 medicinal plant species belonging to 46 families are discussed. The maximum number of medicinal plants belonging to the family Acanthaceae is deserved by 6 species, Andrographis two species, Electraria one species Justicia one species, Ruellia one species and Rungia one species among the 96 species. The plant was mostly used to cure fever, common cold, cough, asthma, rheumatism, etc. In a survey reported of the world health organization, it was found that the 80% population of the world rely on traditional herbal medicine for primary health care need. In this review article discusses the limitation and challenges faced for the production of herbal medicine. There for, this work will also contribute to the search for new drugs and treatments. The documented plants were given in a table that includes respective families along with their botanical name, habit, vernacular name and medicinal uses. Medicinal plants used by local people in Palamalai has been listed along with plant parts used for their ethnomedicinal significance. An exhaustive survey was carried out for one year from 2019 to 2020.

Keywords

Ethnobotanical studies, Tribes, Medicinal plants, Palamalai hills, Traditional Knowledge

Conclusion

Medicinal plants in Palamalai hills play an important role in the primary health care of the tribal people. Herbal medicines are comparably secure to synthetic drugs. The tribal people are more knowledgeable and experienced in conventional medicinal practices because it comes from thousands of years of trial and error. In the present study, 96 plants were documented, and among these 41 plants were herbs, 17 were shrubs, 12 were climbers and 26 were trees. They are using the plants for diuretics, snake bites, skin diseases, diabetics, cough & cold, body pain, and diarrhea as anti-inflammatory and anti-cancerous diseases. Besides, the plants need to be evaluated through phytochemical analysis to discover the possibility of drugs.

References

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How to cite this article

Ranjani N., Kannan R., Kokila D. and Bhuvaneswari V. (2023). Ethnobotanical Survey of Medicinal Plants used by Malayali Tribes in Palamalai Hills Salem District, Tamil Nadu, India. Biological Forum – An International Journal, 15(1): 222-229.