THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It is never too easy to nurture a deepening intimacy with medicinal plants among children as they are growing in places where one can hardly find anything green. But here, at the centre titled ‘Oushadha Sasya Padana Bala Sabha’ at Meethale Kannukara, children above the age of four are learning to be the conservators and propagators of medicinal plants.
Vaidyar Hamsa Madikai, 41, hailing from Kasargod district and who has a deep knowledge of traditional medicines, set up the Balasabha near Vadakara to train children, without charging any fee. Though the Oushadha Sasya Padana Bala Sabha does not have a long history to share, it has a good number of students to its credit. So far, as many as 25,000 children have learnt the basics to identify the herbal plants in their surroundings from the institute, which was registered as a society a couple of years ago. “I opened the centre after realising that the best gift we can give our children is some responsibilities,” says Vaidyar Hamsa. M Hareendranath, a chemical engineer in New Zealand, who returned to life from the attack of cancer with the help of ‘ashwagandha,’ a medicinal plant, inaugurated the Bala Sabha on August 30, 2012.
Though the Bala Sabha mainly focuses on children, the doors are always open to any enthusiast of herbs. In Vaidyar’s words, dedication towards plants can be easily developed among children by giving them an opportunity to have a first-hand experience of the wonders that a medicinal plant can make.
“We have got several students here who strictly follow the instructions given by us and inspire others to be passionate towards ecological conservation,” says C V Shemi, secretary of the Oushadha Sasya Padana Bala Sabha. As many as 1,424 varieties of medicinal plants that are grown by Vaidyar Hamsa Madikai are available at the Bala Sabha. Under the aegis of the sabha, 23 lakh saplings have already been distributed across the state and 1.42 lakh saplings were planted in public places to make the medicinal plants available for locals.
Shemi’s seven-year-old son and a member of the Sabha, Alan Akku, shunned toothpaste around three years ago, when he came to know the good qualities of herbals.
“I found the classes we get here a wonderful way to understand nature and use of plants. I too spread the need to conserve ecology among my peer groups,” smiles the boy. Bala Sabha also gives opportunity to the students to pitch their ideas to enhance medicinal plant cultivation in the district.