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Studies On The Plants Used In The Treatment Of Cuts And Wounds From

                                   Sindhudurg District Of Maharashtra State

                                              S. A. Apate* and A. A. Kengar

                      Botany Department, Gogate -Jogalekar College, Ratnagiri 415612, Maharashtra.
                      * Botany Department, KET’s V.G.Vaze College of Arts, Science and Commerce

                                                     (Autonomous),
                                       Mulund (E), Mumbai 400080, Maharashtra.

                                *Email of corresponding author: sharadapate21@gmail.com

               ABSTRACT
                               Sindhudurg is one of the coastal districts from Maharashtra state, the eastern

               part of the district is lying in the Sahyadri ranges of Western Ghats. The vegetation of the
               district comprises tropical semi-evergreen, tropical moist, and littoral forests. The populations

               from the district residing in the forest and adjoining area of the forest are using the plants

               available  in  the  vicinity  for  the  treatment  of  various  ailments  and  diseases.  In  the  present
               study,  traditional  healers  from  various  places  of  the  district  were  interviewed  for  the

               information  regarding  the  plants  used  to  treat  cuts  and  wounds  with  the  help  of  a
               questionnaire. The plants were collected, identified and the information was recorded.   The

               present paper deals with the studies regarding 11 ethnomedicinal plants used in the treatment
               of cuts and wounds in the Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra state.

               Key Words: Sindhudurg district, ethnomedicinal plants, cuts, and wounds.


               INTRODUCTION:

                               Humankind had used the plants for its welfare since time immemorial. Plants
               present in the surrounding have been used by the human race for the treatment of various

               diseases and ailments. The major sector of the human population is involved in farming and

               cattle rearing activity. Cuts and wounds are the common ailments occurring in human health.
               The herdsmen and the rural populations are using certain plants in their surroundings for the

               treatment of cuts and wounds as well as various common ailments. The earlier reports of the
               district  are  the  floristic  accounts  (Vartak  1966,  Kulkarni  &  Sharma  1984,  Kulkarni  1988,

               Almeida  1990)  and  meager  reports  about  the  ethnobotanical  studies  are  available  (Vartak

               1981). The present paper deals with the study regarding the plants used in the treatment of
               cuts and wounds from the Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra state.






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