Allachy project: Development of a methodology on medicinal plant conservation to strengthen amchi medicine in Ladakh (India)

Grantee:

NOMAD RSI (with Ladakh Society for Traditional Medicines)

Project period: September 2005 to

Highlights

• The project is a contribution to the programme Revitalisation of Tibetan medicine in Ladakh, which has been implemented by the Ladakh Society for Traditional Medicines (LSTM) and Nomad RSI since 1998.
  
• The overall objective of the programme is to develop initiatives on integrated health care and conservation, including improving the management of the medicinal plants at collection sites.
  
• Medicinal plants in Ladakh are threatened because they are slow growing and are becoming increasingly over-harvested for the commercial trade. This creates problems for the amchi (traditional doctors) and local healthcare.
  
• The project is supporting the development of a database on the status of medicinal plants in Ladakh, in relation to their distribution, abundance, harvesting and cultivation.
  
• The project is also encouraging the formation of village groups for the local management of medicinal plants.

See also:

• Interim Project Report for period September 2005 to February 2006.
  Project account by Fanny Jamet (Programme Director of NOMAD RSI) and Alan Hamilton (Plantlife), February 2006
• Report on Medicinal Plants Conservation Campaign, Kanji Village, from 30 September to 2 October 2006.
  by Tsewang Gonbo
• Interim Project Report for period March 2006 to September 2006 (pdf 83kb)
• Final project report, April 2007 "Development of a Methodology on Medicinal Plant Conservtion to Strengthen Tibetan Medicine in Ladakh" ( pdf 2.18 MB) by Nomad RSI and LSTM
• Ladakh Society for Traditional Medicines Annual Report 2007 by LSTM

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Project description

Tibetan medicine has been the traditional health system of Ladakh for over 1000 years. This scholastic healing system contains elements of Ayurveda and Chinese medicine, combined with the philosophy and cosmology of Tibetan Buddhism. For centuries, amchi (traditional doctors following the Tibetan medical tradition) have been the only access to medical treatment throughout Ladakh. They remain central health actors to this day, particularly in remote areas.

Remote rural communities in Ladakh are often deprived of primary healthcare, having little money and living far from medical checkpoints. That’s why a programme called Revitalisation of Tibetan medicine in Ladakh was started and continues to be developed (including through the present project) by the Ladakh Society for Traditional Medicines (LSTM) and Nomad Recherche et Soutien International (Nomad RSI).

The overall aims of the programme are to:

• improve standards of amchi practice,
• ensure that amchi medicine is available in rural areas,
• preserve and support the amchi knowledge system, and
• guarantee sustainable access to essential medicines.

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During the course of the programme, it has become clear that access to medicinal and aromatic plants is a major issue that underlies much of amchi practice. Medicinal plants are under stress. Partly due to over-collection by commercial harvesters, the amchi are facing increased difficulties in obtaining the medicines they need. There is a real need to stimulate work on conservation at the community level.

The majority of Tibetan medicines are based on medicinal plants, many of which can be found growing in Ladakh. This Indian cold desert region supports a wide and unique array of medicinal plants. The high altitude and harsh conditions of Ladakh severely restrict the geographical ranges and population sizes of most plant species, increasing their vulnerability to over-collection or other hazards. Recent activities carried out for development, expanded trade networks and unsustainable harvesting have placed many of Ladakh’s species of medicinal plants under serious threat.

The characteristics of Himalayan medicinal plants make them particularly vulnerable. Many are perennial herbs with slow growing rhizomes. Conservation assessments for medicinal plants in Jammu and Kashmir have been made according to the Red List Criteria of IUCN, backed up by assessments made at a Conservation and Management Planning (CAMP) workshop which was facilitated by the Foundation for Revitalisation of Local Health Traditions (FRLHT). According to these assessments, many species of medicinal plants in Ladakh are considered to be ‘Critically Endangered’, and many more either ‘Endangered’ or ‘Vulnerable’. The critically endangered species include Aconitum heterophyllum, Dactylorhiza hatagirea and Podophyllum hexandrum.

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In this context, all efforts to better manage and conserve the biodiversity of Ladakh are valuable. Initiatives that will improve access to medicinal raw materials for the amchi are especially vital, since many amchi are facing considerable difficulties acquiring the raw materials that they need to produce their medicines.

The project supported by Plantlife has the particular overall objective of developing integrated health care and conservation in order to improve access to essential plants for amchi and assist the concerned communities to take a more active stand in the management of collection sites.

Under the project, an LSTM project team visits various villages to conduct medicinal plant awareness campaigns among the local population. Interviews with amchi and other knowledgeable local residents will allow the collection of detailed information at local level on medicinal plant distribution, abundance, harvesting and cultivation. These research data will be recorded in an electronic database, which, by the time the project ends, will offer an unparalleled overview of medicinal plant diversity in Ladakh.

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Sapi was one of the first villages to be visited under the project (August 2005). The LSTM discussed medicinal plant issues with the community. This brought a very positive and active response from the villagers, who decided to set up their own village Medicinal Plants Management Committee to improve the harvesting of medicinal plants, ensuring that it takes place in a sustainable way.

The establishment of this management committee – the first to be created under the project – demonstrates the interest and concern for the management of medicinal plants by villagers in Ladakh, a part of the world in which relationships between people and their local environment are very close.

A three-day seminar was hold at Leh, the capital of Ladakh, in October 2005, bringing together 50 participants. These included amchi from various parts of Ladakh and other experts, as well as members of the project team. The workshop was valuable for forming partnerships to work together on issues connected with the conservation of medicinal plants.

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