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Kuldeep Chauhan
Traders are literally robbing Himachal of its bio-diversity, including precious medicinal herbs, plants and flowers, as they eke out millions every year and in return pay little to the biodiversity management committee (BMC).
The BMCs may levy charges by way of collecting fee from any person for accessing or collecting any biological resource for commercial purposes from areas falling within its territorial jurisdiction.
Since the state Forest Department has no institutional mechanism in place to regulate the trade of herbs in the state, herb mafias rule the roost in the Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP) and other wildlife sanctuaries. As a result, 47 species of rare, high-valued herbs and medicinal plants have been pushed to the brink.
In 2012, the seizure of 720-kg nag chhatri (a herb worth Rs 1.4 crore found in Kullu from a private Volvo bus) and 1,966-kg rare ‘satuva’ (medicinal herb worth Rs 3.90 crore found from a private truck ferrying scrap in Rajgarh, which was suspected to be extracted from Churdhar wildlife sanctuary) has exposed the Forest Department’s failure to monitor the extraction of herbs by greedy traders. After this, no major seizure was made, sources said.
The state Ayurveda Department has registered 186 herbal companies in the state, which deal in “herb trade”. But the state government has been giving them a free hand to plunder its bio-diversity, mainly rare herbs, plants and flowers, said experts involved in research.
The modus operandi is simple. Herb traders hire local herb collectors, who have in-depth knowledge of each medicinal herb, plant, flower and tree, sources said.
But poor herb collectors, who live in such areas, earn a pittance for collecting these precious herbs. A major chunk of profit goes to herb traders and companies involved in the manufacturing of ‘Ayush healthcare products and medicines’, researchers said. “The bio-diversity is fast depleting right under the nose of the government since the government has no mechanism in place to check the trade of herbs. It has set up a couple of herbal gardens, but even after 16 years, it is yet to bring registered companies under the Biological Diversity (BD) Act, 2002,” a senior scientist at the Himalayan Forest Research Institute (HFRI) said.
As a result, many “vaids” in tribal Spiti, have now become taxi drivers. “The ‘jadi-butis’ have depleted and it is a question of survival now,” said a vaid. Though exact figures are not known, experts say herb mafias trade more than 5,000 quintal herbs worth several crores every year. The main underground markets are in Delhi and Amritsar.
The state Forest Department has failed to protect the GHNP and dozens of wildlife sanctuaries from herbal plunder. These protected areas are forbidden for trade under the Wildlife Protection Act. But national parks and wildlife sanctuaries have become a hotspot for the extraction of precious herbs.
The department, however, claims that they have decontrolled the trade of 38 species of herbs in 2003 and empowered panchayat pradhans to issue permit to traders. It has listed 57 species of herbs and plants, out of which 47 have been listed as threatened ones.
“The Forest Department’s rejuvenation plan of 47 threatened species remains on paper only. It has no first-hand information as to what is happening on the ground,” said a senior official.
Gram panchayats including Kalvari, Srikot, Toong, Sarchi, Mashiar, Shilli, Chehni Kothi, Gaad, Tandi, Seraj, Shanghar, Gada Parli and Deoridhar, are located in the GHNP and its eco-zone produces maximum herbs in Kullu district.
Locals say they have no control over traders, who get permit every year, saying that they have old stock to dispose off. The royalty for permits is not more than Rs 7,000 or so for a year, when the range is opened once in four years by the Forest Department, they added.
As many as 15 years have passed since the state government decontrolled the trade of highly traded and valued herbs and medicinal plant species. But the department is yet to put in place a mechanism to compile data on the status of herbs in the state.
“The HFRI, Shimla, has been organising workshops for farmers, training them to cultivate medicinal plants that can improve their income, but it has achieved little success so far. Much more needs to be done to control and monitor the trade of herbs and medicinal plants in the state, as most of the government schemes remain on paper and fail to benefit locals,” a senior scientist at HFRI said.
The HP State Biodiversity Board (HPSBB) was constituted in 2014 to document bio-diversity. “The companies that trade herbs have to pay about 2 per cent of the share of their business to the panchayat-based BMC under the BD Act. But they have yielded paltry Rs 35 lakh revenue till date,” a source said.
The BD Act is being implemented on a pilot basis for the first time in the state in Shimla, Sirmaur, Kullu and Chamba, as these are a storehouse of bio-diversity.
“We are educating all stakeholders, mainly local people, about the biodiversity and its stakes for them through their active participation in the state. We have formed 614 biodiversity committees so far," he said,” said Kunal Satyarthi, member secretary, HPSBB. and HIMCOSTE.
Main targeted areas
Wildlife sanctuaries and bio-reserves, including Great Himalayan National Park, Kullu; Pin Valley National Park, Lahaul-Spiti; Churah; Bharmour and Pangi areas in Chamba; Rupi-Bhawa, Sangla valley and lower Kinnar Kailash range in Kinnaur; Chanshal, Dodra Kwar, Churdhar sanctuary in Shimla and Sirmaur districts.
Loot’s on
The HP State Biodiversity Board has made over 125 People’s Biodiversity Registers (PBR) documenting local bio-resources so far. It has constituted over 614 biodiversity management committees (BMCs) and the exercise to cover the entire state is on, which will involve NGOs, universities and government departments. — Kunal Satyarthi, Member secretary, HPSBB
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