Exploring Diversity Of Plants Used For Local Therapeutic Practices In Bathinda District, Punjab: An Ethno-Medicinal Study.

In a comprehensive ethnobotanical study in the Bathinda district of the Malwa region (Punjab), an extensive compilation of plant usage in folk medicine was undertaken through in-depth interviews. The primary objective was to gather and identify plants used for therapeutic purposes and capture information on traditional herbal medicine. Plant specimens were collected during numerous field trips. Furthermore, the study identified 87 plant taxa from 41 families and documented their use in folk medicine, with 63 taxa identified as cultivated, 18 as wild, and the remaining 6 as both cultivated and wild. The most frequently used plants primarily belong to the Fabaceae family, representing 10.3% of the total, followed by the Solanaceae at 8.04%, and the Apocynaceae, Poaceae, and Cucurbitaceae families, each representing another 5.7%. As a result of this comprehensive study, 18 ailments medicinal usages of the 87 taxa have been determined. The use values indicate the most significant medicinal plants to be Azadirachta indica (0.042) followed by Cassia fistula (0.033) and Curcuma longa (0.030). In conclusion, this study highlights the importance of traditional folk medicine usage, particularly among the rural population of Bathinda, and underscores the significance of preserving and understanding these valuable traditional healing practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]