BHAWANIPATNA: In the small village of Nandol in Kalahandi, Patayat Sahu’s house stands out for its green canopy. The garden developed by the 65-year-old villager boasts of a wide range of 3,000 medicinal plants and Sahu has grown all of it over only 1.5 acre of land behind his house.
Juggling between the roles of a farmer and a traditional healer, Sahu has been taking extra care to grow these plants. “All I use is organic manure to nourish them. No chemical fertiliser has ever been used in my garden”, he says.
Sahu began learning about traditional medicine as a hobby at a young age. He developed the medicinal garden behind his house 40 years back and kept on adding new species of plants to it over the years. “My grandfather was a Vaidya (traditional healer). After completing my education, I learnt the traditional healing practices from him.
Besides, I got access to many manuscripts on traditional healing practices and medicinal plants”, says Sahu, who is a farmer by day and Vaidya by night. But he does not demand a fee for treating people and accepts whatever they offer. The medicines are primarily prepared from the plants and herbs in his garden.
Of the 3,000 species in his garden, he has collected 500 species from different parts of India during his exposure visits facilitated by the Odisha Medicinal Plant Board.
The rest have been collected from different forests of Kalahandi. His garden boasts of rare species of plants like Ashoka, Lodhra, Bidanga, Sambarsingha, Rasnajadi, Tihudi, Bhin Kakharu, Maeda, Sarpagandha and Shatavari. Besides, he has five varieties of Bhringraj, Pengu, Panikusuma, Rajapatha, Nagavel, Debanasan, Jaladimbiri and Jyotismati.
Sahu has also grown all the Dasamoola species which are used in many Ayurvedic medicines.
“The Dasamoola herbs are also used to treat the Trinity during the Anasara period”, claims Sahu, who is a Prakruti Bandhu awardee. He has also been distributing saplings from his garden to villagers in Nandol and nearby areas.
He says documentation of many species of medicinal plants and herbs is the need of the hour.
“Denudation of forests and unscientific harvesting of herbal plants by traders and their agents is threatening many plant species. There should be a sustainable harvesting protocol and conservation of the species by the Forest department with help of villagers who know the plants”, he says.
Sahu himself has documented several medicinal plants, and written two volumes of illustrated books on them. He, however, does not have the funds to publish them.