A view of Recreation Park. Picture by Sarat Sarma

July 25: A 20-hectare ecology park just six km from Diphu town has become one of the richest repositories of rare medicinal herbs and plants, some of which are used as alternatives to allopathic medicine by the tribes inhabiting the twin hill districts of Karbi Anglong and North Cachar Hills.

The Karbi Anglong forest department claims that its assortment of plants makes Recreation Park, set up in 1998, ?one of the best herbal gardens in the country?. It has as many as 523 rare species of indigenous herbs and medicinal plants, most of which are extinct from the denuded jungles of Karbi Anglong and North Cachar Hills.

The garden also has 27 species of bamboo, 35 species of orchids and 110 species of indigenous fruit trees.

Ranjan Borua, officer-in-charge of Recreation Park, said 30 of the medicinal herbs in the garden were ?popular? among the local tribes but were yet to be discovered by scientists.

?Until 20 years ago, herbs and barks of trees were integral to any tribal family?s survival. For instance, they used Baphikanthus cusia (sibu) and Indigofera tinctoria to dye their clothes and mixed the bulk of Premna latifolia (ankalok) in rice to increase its quantity. The use of allopathic medicine was not popular and they used herbs and barks of trees to cure ailments. But encroachment on forests resulted in these herbs vanishing from the jungles,? he said.

As many as 18 different communities, including the Karbi, Kuki, Dimasa, Zeme Naga, Hrankhol, Hmar, Manipuri and Baite tribes, inhabit the twin hill districts.

Conservator of forests C.M. Sarma said the mission to conserve herbs would continue. ?There are still more than 30 endangered species of herbs that we have to collect. Our mission is to create awareness among the local tribes about the importance of these gifts of nature and to showcase the rich natural resources of the indigenous communities before the world,? he said.

Recreation Park has a nursery, a children?s arena, an artificial lake with paddle boats and an archaeological centre.