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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF AYUSH
RAJYA SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 1936
ANSWERED ON 10/03/2026
“Potential of Odisha’s medicinal plants”
1936. Shri Debashish Samantaray:
Will the Minister of Ayush be pleased to state:
(a) whether Government has assessed the potential of Odisha’s medicinal plants and tribal
traditional knowledge for integration with AYUSH systems; and
(b) if so, the steps taken to promote cultivation and value addition in the State?
ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF STATE (IC) OF THE MINISTRY OF AYUSH
(SHRI PRATAPRAO JADHAV)
(a). Ministry of Ayush through its Research Councils viz. Central Council for Research in
Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) and Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM)
are engaged in documentation of traditional knowledge from tribals by their respective
programmes.
Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) has been implementing
the Tribal Health Care Research Programme (THCRP) in Odisha through its peripheral institute,
Central Ayurveda Research Institute (CARI), Bhubaneswar (Odisha) under the Tribal Sub Plan
(TSP). The programme focuses on documentation and validation of Local Health Traditions
(LHTs)/folk lore practiced by local traditional healers and tribal communities, particularly
relating to the therapeutic use of medicinal plants.
Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM) has been undertaking the
‘Survey and Cultivation of Medicinal Plants’ programme through its peripheral institutes,
including Regional Research Institute of Unani Medicine, Bhadrak, located in Odisha. Under this
programme, the Council has conducted a series of ethnobotanical surveys across various forest
divisions and documented 9,567 folklore claims relating to the traditional therapeutic use of
medicinal plants. These documented claims have subsequently been compiled and published by
the Council in nine volumes.
1(b). Presently, the National Medicinal Plants Board (NMPB), under the Ministry of Ayush, India,
is implementing the Central Sector Scheme (CSS) on ‘Conservation, Development and
Sustainable Management of Medicinal Plants’. Under this scheme, support is provided for
activities such as Forward and Backward Linkages in the Supply Chain of Medicinal Plants
(Integrated Component), Information, Education and Communication (IEC) activities, and
Regional-cum-Facilitation Centres (RCFCs) in project mode through Government as well as
private universities, research institutions and organizations across the country to promote various
aspects of medicinal plants, including cultivation and value addition.
Under the said scheme Training / Workshops / Seminars/ Conferences etc. are being
supported. During past three years (FY 2022-23 to 2024-25) total 03 projects were supported for
organizing training program/seminars/workshops etc. for the promotion of cultivation of
medicinal plants in the state of Odisha state.
Beside this, NMPB through its Regional Cum Facilitation Centre (Eastern Region)
(RCFC) is providing financial and technical assistance to farmers/other stakeholders for
development of Quality Planting Material (QPM) of medicinal plants/herbs and also impart
training to farmers. This center located at Jadavpur University, Kolkata (West Bengal), covers
the States of Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, Sikkim and West Bengal. The center has developed
18,31,476 QPM, organized 31 training programmes, and trained 2,328 farmers for promotion of
medicinal plant cultivation in the region during the last three years.
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