Survey of Ethnobotanical Medicinal Plants Used by Gaddi Tribal Community in Village Bandi District Kangra, Himachal Pradesh (India)

Introduction: In India, the majority of the people of tribal and rural areas near the Himalayan ranges depend on their traditional knowledge to combat various diseases and infections by using local medicinal plants, herbs and shrubs. The plants are used in different forms and parts. Each plant part has a unique effect on ailments and diseases. On the other hand, due to changing lifestyles, traditional healers' keeping of traditional knowledge secret, and the casualness of young people, folk medicine knowledge is declining globally. The Himalayan ranges occupy most of the area of Himachal Pradesh in the Dhauladhar range of the middle Himalaya, which is mostly inhabited by tribal communities. Himachal Pradesh's major medicinal plants are found in the subtropical zone's sub-mountain and low hills below 700 m above mean sea level. Material and Methods: The present study, from April to August of 2021, was regarding the documentation of ethano-medicinal plants in village ?Bandi? which lies between the co-ordinates 32?10?56" N latitude and 76?16?28" E longitude, and is located in the district of Kangra. An ethnobotanical survey has been initiated by conducting interviews and conferences/meetings with people of the Gaddi community to find out the medicinal properties of the collected medicinal plant specimens on the basis of a semi-structured questionnaire. Results: In the present investigation, 20 medicinal plants were reported and all of these plant species were angiosperms, belonging to seventeen different families. It was recorded that among these reported 20 medicinal plants, 9 (45%) were trees, 6 medicinal plants (30%) were shrubs, 4 medicinal plants (20%) were herbs and 1 medicinal plant (5%) was a climber. Conclusion: The present study has shown how inhabitants of the study area survived when they were not introduced to modern world medical practises to treat different ailments and maintain a healthy lifestyle. The present study has helped to explore more about the medicinal properties of available plants in the village and familiarise them with traditional knowledge among the people of the study area.