Abstract

ETHNOBOTANICAL DIVERSITY AND TRADITIONAL MEDICINAL USES OF PLANTS FOR THE TREATMENT OF VARIOUS AILMENTS IN MAHOBA DISTRICT, UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA

Dr. Vinay Kumar Prajapati

Abstract

Medicinal plants play an important role in traditional healthcare systems, particularly in rural communities where indigenous knowledge contributes to the treatment of various ailments. The present study documents the diversity of ethnomedicinal plants and their traditional therapeutic applications in Mahoba district, Uttar Pradesh, India. The study focuses on plant families, medicinally used plant parts, and the range of ailments treated through traditional plant-based remedies. The recorded data comprise 55 plant entries with 55 genera representing 31 families. Fabaceae was the dominant family, with 14 species, followed by Rutaceae and Solanaceae, with three species each. Ten families were represented by two species each, while the remaining 19 families were represented by one species each. Analysis of medicinal plant parts revealed that leaves were the most frequently used, accounting for 25 records, followed by roots (12), seeds (8), bark (4), fruits (4), whole plants (3), stems (2), and latex (1). The recorded therapeutic applications covered 12 categories of ailments. Fever, including malaria and typhoid fever, was associated with 10 entries, followed by piles (8), wounds (5), and cough and cold (5). Snakebite, ulcer, headache, bronchitis, sores, stomach problems, scorpion sting, and arthritis were also represented in the recorded dataset. The predominance of Fabaceae and the frequent use of leaves and roots highlight important patterns in the documented traditional medicinal knowledge of the region. The findings provide a preliminary record of ethnomedicinal plant diversity and traditional therapeutic practices in Mahoba district. Further field-based documentation, botanical authentication, and pharmacological investigations are required to validate the reported uses and support the sustainable utilization of medicinal plant resources.

Keywords: Ethnobotany, medicinal plants, traditional knowledge, plant parts, indigenous healthcare, Mahoba district, Uttar Pradesh.