Title : Natural plant bio-resources and its medicinal properties
Abstract:
North East India is considered to be the biological “gateway” for much of India’s flora and fauna. As a result it is one of the richest in biological values, high in endemism and holds a large number of rare species that are now under serious threat. Hotspots are areas that are extremely rich in species, have high endemism and are under serious threat due to human activities. Endemism refers to an ecological word of being unique to a defined geographic location. Such as an island, nation, etc. The North East is among the 34 Hotspots of the world. If the natural resources are not maintained, the balance of nature will be disturbed. Once this is lost it will lead to many problems. The natural resources can be commercially used to foreign exchange linked with tourism. The preservation of natural resources helps to study morphology, anatomy, physiology, ecology of the different species. Wild animals provide the best means of sports and recreation. The natural resources are the only assets of North East India. Therefore it must be a mandatory principle of every citizen to conserve and utilize the natural resources with proper management.
The North-Eastern region is known for its vast natural resources. The landlocked northeast region of the country comprises eight separate states which characterizes the transition zone between the Indian, Indo- Malayan and Indo-Chinese biogeographic regions and a meeting place of the Himalayan Mountains and Peninsular India. Medicinal plants constitute an important therapeutic aid in alleviating ailments. Herbal medicine is still the mainstay of about 75-80% of the world population, mainly in the developing countries for primary health care because of better cultural acceptability, better compatibility with the human body and lesser side effects The active constituents extracted from the plants can be used for production of semi synthetic drugs and that is having medicinal properties used in the health sector.The present work is the result of intensive study of some of the medicinal plants of the north-east region. Few of the medicinal plants used for health care and its habitat have been explained here. However, a large number of such plants are yet to be identified and studied in detail for their ethno-botanical aspects.
