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Globally, Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKSs), which have evolved through rigorously tested methods and practices, are a testimony of human intelligence and endurance. The diversity of goods such as food, beverages, herbs, etc., and its associated systems, which form an integral part of modern cuisine and healthcare systems, are deeply rooted in IKS and immensely contributing to overall well-being of mankind. The present study is an attempt to document and understand the contribution of indigenous and local knowledge to biodiversity conservation and management. Appreciation to the value of traditional and indigenous knowledge is globally recognized for their principles of coexistence and sustainable use practices. Past studies indicate a strong relationship between indigenous knowledge and sustainable development goals. This knowledge is valuable not only to dependent communities, but also to the modern world for ensuring food security and human well-being. The documentation of such valuable knowledge is therefore fundamentally essential for mainstreaming and strengthening the discourses on sustainable ecosystem management, and to address the preponderance of poverty among indigenous communities. Amid the changing scenario of consumption and the trend of revisiting nature-based solutions, the IKS hold a tremendous scope of engaging the community people in sustainable harvest and utilization of natural resources.

Polygonatum verticillatum (L.) All. is an important medicinal herb that belongs to the family Asparagaceae. The rhizome of the species is used in Chyavanprash preparation and several other ayurvedic formulations. Numerous active constituents like saponins, alkaloids, phytohormones, flavonoids, antioxidants, lysine, serine, aspartic acid, diosgenin, β-sitosterol, etc. have been reported from this species. In this study, morphological, phytochemical, antioxidant and genetic variations of 11 distant populations of P. verticillatum were measured. Considerably (P

Trees are acknowledged as most valued gift of nature and saviour of earth, enhancing and protecting landscapes, ecosystems and production systems. An authentic database of tree flora missing from local to global scale has immense value. Formulation of conservation and management policies are difficult owing to huge variation in number of species, lack of tree cover and quantification of tree diversity. To endow with a pragmatic groundwork for quantification of tree diversity of IHR, we had published an inventory of 1466 tree species (Angiosperms and Gymnosperms) along with their taxonomically vetted scientific name, distributional range, phenological attributes (leaf persistence and flower colour), use value, congruence, endemism and threatened species. One more database on tree diversity of Western Himalaya was also published with an annotated list of tree flora compiled from unrestricted literature and e-floras related to the regions. The present paper is an attempt to bring out the overall representation of tree flora of IHR, its distributional pattern, congruence, and endemism criterion in Western and Eastern Himalaya along with correlation between the regions as well as states.

Mountains are important global sites for monitoring biological and socioecological responses to climate change, and the Himalaya has some of the world’s most rapid and visible signs of climate change. The increased frequency and severity of climate anomalies in the region are expected to significantly affect livelihoods of indigenous communities in the region. This study documents the perceptions of indigenous communities of climate change in the western Himalaya of India. The study highlights the power of knowledge and understanding available to indigenous people as they observe and respond to climate change impacts. We conducted a field-based study in 14 villages that represent diverse socioecological features along an altitudinal range of 1000–3800 m MSL in the western Himalaya. Among the sampled population, most of the respondents (>95%) agreed that climate is changing. However, people residing at low- and high-altitude villages differ significantly in their perception, with more people at high altitudes believing in an overall warming trend. Instrumental temperature and rainfall from nearby meteorological stations also supported the perception of local inhabitants. The climate change perceptions in the region were largely determined by sociodemographic variables such as age, gender, and income as well as altitude. A logistic regression, which exhibited significant association of sociodemographic characteristics with climate change perceptions, further supported these findings. The study concluded that the climate change observations of local communities can be usefully utilized to develop adaptation strategies and mitigation planning in the Himalayan region.

An in vitro propagation protocol has been developed for Berberis asiatica, an important Himalayan medicinal shrub. Significantly higher in vitro seed germination (50%) was obtained in Murashige and...

Altitude is a determining factor of vegetation composition, ecosystem properties and processes, and availability of soil nutrients. Present study examined soil nutrients at two depths i.e. 0–15 cm ...

P. cirrhifolium, P. multiflorum and P. verticillatum are important medicinal herb of genus Polygonatum found in Himalaya and are used in many ayurvedic formulations including Chyavanprash. However, a comparative account on their biochemical attributes in Himalaya is still lacking. Therefore, the present attempt was made to explore the polyphenolics and antioxidant activity in targeted species. Result revealed a varied range of polyphenolics (i.e., phenolics 1.90–6.12; tannins 1.57–3.78; flavonols 1.30–8.59; flavonoids 1.83–7.32 mg/g dry weight, respectively) and antioxidant activity (ABTS 3.22–6.11; DPPH 0.99–1.70; FRAP 0.35–2.32 mM AAE/100 g dry weight). Results are indicative that P. verticillatum possesses higher polyphenolic activity and P. cirrhifolium is rich in DPPH and FRAP activity. However, P. verticillatum and P. cirrhifolium are threatened in wild and hence, P. multiflorum with maximum total flavonoids and total antioxidant ABTS activity can be prioritized and used as a substitute to reduce pressure on these species.

The population of snow leopard (Panthera uncia) is declining across their range, due to poaching, habitat fragmentation, retaliatory killing, and a decrease of wild prey species. Obtaining information on rare and cryptic predators living in remote and rugged terrain is important for making conservation and management strategies. We used the Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) ecological niche modeling framework to predict the potential habitat of snow leopards across the western Himalayan region, India. The model was developed using 34 spatial species occurrence points in the western Himalaya, and 26 parameters including, prey species distribution, temperature, precipitation, land use and land cover (LULC), slope, aspect, terrain ruggedness and altitude. Thirteen variables contributed 98.6% towards predicting the distribution of snow leopards. The area under the curve (AUC) score was high (0.994) for the training data from our model, which indicates predictive ability of the model. The model predicted that there was 42 432 km2 of potential habitat for snow leopards in the western Himalaya region. Protected status was available for 11 247 km2 (26.5%), but the other 31 185 km2 (73.5%) of potential habitat did not have any protected status. Thus, our approach is useful for predicting the distribution and suitable habitats and can focus field surveys in selected areas to save resources, increase survey success, and improve conservation efforts for snow leopards.

Diabetes is a disease of serious concern faced by the health care industry today. Primary diabetes mellitus and its complications are still costly to manage with modern drugs. Extensive research on the screening of anti-diabetic agents in past decades established natural products as one of the major potential sources of drug discovery. However, only a few drugs of plant origin have been scientifically validated. Therefore, the development of new anti-diabetic drugs is of great demand. Hence, natural products could be explored as potential anti-diabetic drugs. Natural plants derived extracts and molecules like berberine, ginsenosides, curcumin, stevioside, gingerols, capsaicin, catechins, simple phenolic compounds, anthocyanins, resveratrol, genistein and hesperidin obtained from different species are used for curing diabetes and found to possess different action mechanisms. In this review, the importance of medicinal plants and their active constituents for anti-diabetic agents are described. The present study also emphasized the importance of diabetes control, reduction in its complications and use of the anti-diabetic agents. The detailed action mechanism of these extracts/compounds for their activities are also described. However, the anti-diabetic drugs from plant origin require scientific validation through animal and clinical studies to exploit in terms of modern commercial medicines.

Valeriana jatamansi Jones is an important herbaceous plant of the Caprifoliaceae family used for the treatment of insomnia and stress-related disorders, due to its sedative and anxiolytic propertie...

Sm. is a perennial, rhizomatous, essential oil bearing, plant belongs to the family Zingiberaceae. In the present study, essential oil composition in rhizome part was analysed among 16 populations ...

Mahonia jaunsarensis (Family Berberidaceae) is an endemic species of the Himalaya narrowly distributed in Chakrata hills of Uttarakhand. Considering that the species is traditionally used by local inhabitants for various purposes, this study was made to explore its biochemical attributes using diverse solvent systems, i.e., ethanol, methanol and distilled water. Results revealed a varied range of total phenolics (1.00–1.39 mg GAE/g); tannins (1.01–1.11 mg TAE/g); flavonoids (1.07–1.22 mg QE/g); and flavonols (0.71–1.04 mg QE/g) across solvent extractions. Likewise, in vitro antioxidant activity (i.e., ABTS 0.82–1.09; DPPH 0.94–1.16; and FRAP 0.81–1.05 mM AAE/100 g fresh weight) varied. Results are indicative that the species possess higher bioactive attributes and a good source of natural antioxidant. A solvent system with moderate polarity, such as methanol, was found best for harnessing the maximum potential. The study provides baseline information on biochemical attributes of the species, which can, with due R&D interventions, be extended for the industrial applications.

Berberis, one of the major sources of berberine and polyphenols, is widely accepted genus for its medicinal properties. The inclusion of these phytochemicals in different health formulations has widened its scope in pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals. In the present study, multi-component analysis (MCA) has been used to extract these nutraceutical compounds from Berberis jaeschkeana roots under microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) conditions. To determine the optimum extraction condition, different factors, including, microwave power, sample to solvent ratio, irradiation time, solvent pH and solvent concentration were tested under 42 experiments. The MCA includes, Plackett-Burmen and Central Composite Design and analyzes model fitness, regression coefficient (β), analysis of variance (ANOVA) and 3D response curve. The results showed significant model fitness and involvement of linear, quadratic and interactive effect of different factors. Under optimized MAE condition, [i.e. 1 g of sample extracted through 70 mL of a solution (100% methanol pH 2.0), provided microwave power of 598 W for 2 min of irradiation time], the berberine and palmatine contents were recorded as 46.38 mg g−1 and 20.54 mg g−1 respectively. Under optimized condition, the yield of alkaloids were found closer to the models’ predicted value. Similarly, total phenolic content and antioxidant activities were also found closer to the models’ predicted value. To test the suitability of the optimized MAE condition for other species i.e., Berberis asiatica, extraction of alkaloids and polyphenolics was conducted and recorded higher yield to the previous records. Moreover, under optimum extraction condition, six and seven polyphenolic compounds from B. jaeschkeana and B. asiatica were quantified respectively. The proposed MAE optimization design using MCA contributes towards faster and greener extraction of alkaloids and polyphenolics with higher yield. Moreover these greener approaches could sustainably utilize species during extract preparation and harnessing its nutraceutical and pharmaceutical potential. This study design could also be replicated on other valuable species or compounds for effective extraction of nutraceutical components and sustainable utilization of natural products.

Polygonatum cirrhifolium is an important medicinal herb of family Asparagaceae used to cure several ailments. Its rhizome forms an important ingredient of “Chyavanprash” which is identified for its rejuvenating properties. However, P.cirrhifolium is least explored scientifically and systematically till date. Therefore, in this study genetic diversity and phytochemical variations along with antimutagenic activity of P.cirrhifolium populations was evaluated. Antimutagenic activity varied remarkably (pP. cirrhifolium revealed that the greatest value of the K was 3 for studied populations. Gene flow among studied populations was found sufficient to encounter genetic erosion in the species. Therefore, it can be recommended that the populations with higher ingredient and genetic diversity can be utilized for conservation priority and management plan of this species.

Understanding the species richness and β-diversity patterns along elevation gradients can aid in formulating effective conservation strategies particularly in areas where local anthropogenic stresses and climate change are quite significant as in the Himalaya. Thus, we studied macrolichen richness and β-diversity along elevational gradients at three sites, namely Kashmir (2200 to 3800 m a.m.s.l), Uttarakhand (2000–3700 m a.m.s.l) and Sikkim (1700 to 4000 m a.m.s.l) which cover much of the Indian Himalayan Arc. In all, 245 macrolichen species belonging to 77 genera and 26 families were collected from the three sites. Only 11 species, 20 genera and 11 families were common among the three transects. Despite the differences in species composition, the dominant functional groups in the three sites were the same: foliose, fruticose and corticolous forms. The hump-shaped elevation pattern in species richness was exhibited by most of the lichen groups, though an inverse hump-shaped pattern was also observed in certain cases. β-diversity (βsor) based on all pairs of comparisons along an elevation gradient varied from 0.48 to 0.58 in Kashmir, 0.03 to 0.63 in Uttarakhand and 0.46 to 0.77 in Sikkim. The contribution of turnover to β-diversity was more than nestedness at all the three transects. Along elevation β-diversity and its components of turnover and nestedness varied significantly with elevation. While species turnover increased significantly along the elevation in all the three transects, nestedness decreased significantly in Kashmir and Sikkim transects but increased significantly in the Uttarakhand transect. Except for the Kashmir Himalayan elevation transect, stepwise β-diversity and its components of turnover and nestedness did not vary significantly with elevation. The present study, the first of its kind in the Himalayan region, clearly brings out that macrolichen species richness, β-diversity, and its components of turnover and nestedness vary along the elevation gradients across the Himalayan Arc. It also highlights that contribution of turnover to β-diversity is higher in comparison to nestedness at all the three transects. The variations in species richness and diversity along elevation gradients underpin the importance of considering elevational gradients in planning conservation strategies.

It has been established that resurvey of historical vegetation stands, even those not marked permanently, could foster our understanding of vegetation dynamics and changes in structure and composition over time. However, such studies are poorly available, particularly in remote landscapes of the Indian Himalaya. There exists a complete lack of resurveys, which has limited our ability to provide reliable evidence of changes over the decades. This study, for the first time in the Indian Himalaya, considered repeat surveys (nearly after 25 years) of vegetation stands in eleven forest communities of the buffer zone of NDBR (Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve). Thirty historical forest stands, earlier studied in 1988–1990, were revisited during 2012–2014 and investigated using the same survey methods as used in the previous study. We found that previously reported dominant tree species, i.e., Alnus nepalensis, Acer cappadocicum, Quercus floribunda, Quercus semecarpifolia, Hippophae salicifolia, and Betula utilis, in nine out of eleven communities in the study area are continuing to exhibit dominance in the community. However, a significant increase in species richness and density in the seedling and sapling layer in Quercus floribunda, Quercus semecarpifolia, Rhododendron arboreum, and Abies pindrow is indicative of the ongoing process of change in forest composition. The compositional features of plant communities, when analyzed through Community Change Sensitivity (CCS) approach, identified Quercus floribunda, mixed Quercus—deciduous spp., Hippophae salicifolia, and Abies pindrow as the most change-sensitive communities in the study area and thus can be prioritized as the long-term ecological monitoring sites in the west Himalaya to understand intensity and patterns of changes. The potential changes based on the ecological information from two time period compositional data sets, having conservation and management implications, should be accommodated in the long-term perspective plans of the reserve.

The Himalaya, as provider of goods and range of ecosystem services, is vital for sustaining life of millions of people in uplands and billions in lowlands. Indian National Action Plan on Climate Change has recognized the region vital for ecological security of the country. However, growing demand for bio-resources, combined with inadequate appreciation for values of goods and services provided by Himalayan biodiversity, has led to the unsustainable use of these resources, leading to environmental degradation in the region. The paper also looks into the scenario as to how recent pandemic of COVID 19 has brought increased focus of people on bio-resources of the region. More importantly it has suggested conservation and sustainable utilization of biodiversity to ensure for sustaining the continuous flow of ecosystem services and goods. Biodiversity in the region provides several opportunities, however, under changing scenario, we need to think afresh and differently on possibilities of finding better and optimal livelihood options, and the issues of conservation in the region. In this context, larger focus on conservation education has been stressed as a way forward. This paper attempts to build a case for the biodiversity in Indian Himalayan Region through a SWOT assessment. Certain cases have been elaborated wherein the outlook has changed to harness the values.

Populations of Polygonatum cirrhifolium (Wall.) Royle and Malaxis muscifera (Lindl.) Kuntze are restricted to small pockets and are subject to destructive harvesting (rhizomes/pseudobulbs) from wild. Being under high threat categories considering habitat specificity, population size, utilization and extraction trends, both the species need conservation interventions. This study in Kumaun West Himalaya reveals that in the case of P. cirrhifolium the maximum density (6.33 individual/m2) was reported for the Burphu population, whereas for M. muscifera the maximum density (1.75 individual/m2) was reported for Kathaliya population. No significant (p

The Himalaya, as provider of range of goods and ecosystem services, is vital for sustaining the life of billions of people. Recognition as one of the Global biodiversity hotspot implies its global significance. The forest ecosystems and plant biodiversity in the region is predicted to respond to the rapid warming and the human induced perturbations. However, documentation of these responses and likely consequences is meagre so as to provide a basis for future comparison. Realizing the importance of understanding relationships of climate change (CC) and forest biodiversity, systematic collection of data sets, covering various aspects of environment was attempted through establishing Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) and monitoring. The LTERs in general, have emerged to be important to improve our understanding on spatio-temporal variations happening in a particular ecosystem. Indian National Action Plan for Climate Change (NAPCC) sets out National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE) to conserve Himalayan ecosystem from the brunt of climate vulnerabilities. Considering importance of Himalaya forests and their sensitivity to CC impacts, NMSHE has stressed on undertaking Long-Term Ecological Monitoring (LTEM) and development of monitoring protocol with forest biodiversity specific parameters and indicators. In this context first of its kind attempt have been made to develop long-term ecological monitoring protocol along with suitable criteria and indicators for the Indian Himalaya, and demonstrate it through documenting base line data of established LTEM plots in diverse forest types in the Indian western Himalaya.

Wild fruits are important food resources that provide health promoting nutraceutical components, which vary with ripening stages. In present study, five wild edible fruits of Indian Himalayan Region i.e., Myrica esculenta, Berberis asiatica, Rubus ellipticus, Pyracantha crenulata and Morus alba were examined for their nutraceutical potential at different ripening stages. The results of present study showed that polyphenolic concentration decreased whereas anthocyanin level increased with fruit ripening, however few species and compounds showed different trends. Among the tested fruit species, unripe fruits of B. asiatica followed by M. esculenta were found to be the best for harvesting polyphenolics (especially catechin), while ripen fruits of M. esculenta followed by B. asiatica were found the best for anthocyanin (cyanin and delphinidin) extraction. The results from this study can be effectively used by the harvesters, consumers, traders and food and nutraceutical industries to harness maximum nutraceutical potential depending on the preferred compounds and ripening stages of these species.

The study attempts quantitative assessment of the use value of traditionally used woody species in a representative mid-Himalayan watershed of west Himalaya. Ethnobotanical surveys were conducted in the fringe villages of altitudinally diverse forested area of the watershed covering different age group respondents. A total of 34 woody species (27 trees and 7 shrubs) belonging to 25 families were identified as useful in the watershed, and their availability varied considerably across the altitudes. The relative frequency citation and use value for each identified species were analysed. Further, vegetation surveys were conducted in nearby forests to assess the availability of identified useful species. Outcomes of this study can be used to develop an effective augmentation plan for the community forests within the watershed and other Himalayan forests.

Efficient micropropagation procedure was developed for Origanum vulgare, a high-value culinary herb, and the phytochemicals, phenolic content, antioxidant and antimutagenic activity of leaf and stem, derived from different growing stages were analyzed. The agar solidified Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with a combination of 6-benzylaminopurine and α-naphthaleneacetic acid was optimized as best shoot-multiplication-medium. Shoots were rooted best on 1/2 strength MS medium supplemented with 50 µM indole-3-butyric acid (IBA). The plantlets were successfully acclimatized ex vitro in a soil, sand and farmyard manure mixture (2:1:1 v/v/v) with 100% survival rate in greenhouse. The total anthocyanin and total phenolic content were observed significantly higher in leaves of in vitro-raised plants. However, total tannin, flavonoid and antioxidant activity remained higher in leaves of mother plant maintained under ployhouse condition. All the plant extracts have shown significant antimutagenic activity except in vitro-growing plants. A total of 13 polyphenolic compounds were detected in different extracts using high performance liquid chromatography. Among these, catechin was detected maximum in in vitro-growing cultures and chlorogenic acid in leaves of mother plant. These findings will help the farmers, medicinal plant growers, and industries for mass multiplication and effective extraction of phytochemicals from O. vulgare.

Valeriana jatamansi Jones (Family: Caprifoliaceae), a high value medicinal plant, was distributed in many countries of Asia. The species possesses important valepotriates and is a good source of flavones or flavone glycosides, lignans, sesquiterpenoids or sesquiterpenoid glycoside, bakkenolide type sesquiterpenoids, phenolic compounds, terpinoids, etc. The use of the species in traditional and modern medicines is well known. For instance, V. jatamansi is very important for its insect repelling and antihelmethic properties. Similarly, sedative, neurotoxic, cytotoxic, antidepressant, antioxidant, and antimicrobial activities of the species in various ailments in the indigenous system of medicine, particularly in Asia, are reported. This review focuses on the detailed phytochemical composition, medicinal uses, and pharmacological properties of V. jatamansi along with analysis of botanical errors in published literature and reproducibility of the biomedical researches on this multipurpose herbaceous species.

Dactylorhiza hatagirea (D. Don) Soo (Orchidaceae) is a critically endangered high-value medicinal plant collected from wild and extensively used against diabetes, cuts/wound healing, gastric disorders, chronic fever, seminal weakness/dysfunctions, and bone fractures. The tuber of the species yields high quality “Salep” having astringent and aphrodisiac properties, with high economic value. This results in high demand and illegal collection of the species from wild, thus making this species one of the most exploited species in the Indian Himalaya. The populations of D. hatagirea are restricted to small isolated pockets and are subject to destructive harvesting, therefore, need urgent in situ as well as ex situ conservation interventions. In view of this, the present study is an attempt to understand population status, its distribution, threats, and vulnerability of the species. A total of 14 sites in different habitat types along the altitudinal gradient (2500–4500 m) were selected for intensive field study in the Indian Western Himalaya. The results of the study reveal that D. hatagirea prefers moist laden undulating habitats in alpine meadows. The population density of the species ranges between 0.70 and 2.43 individuals/m2 in alpine meadows of the studied sites. Population density and species abundance increased significantly along the altitude within its range of occurrence. The relationship between altitude and total density was curvilinear and significant (r2=0.666, p 0.247) between slope and total density. The results of the study also indicate that the vegetation in alpine ecosystem were more diverse in species composition at mid-altitudes (3400 to 3700 m) than high altitudes. Destructive harvesting of underground tuber and irregular grazing were observed as critical threats to the species. D. hatagirea share habitats with few expanding species (i.e., Polygonum polystachyum) and highly traded species (i.e., Ophiocordyceps sinensis) in the alpine meadows, which affects its population density. The study concluded that short life cycle, poor seed germination rate, specific microhabitat requirement, low population density, and high commercial value limit the widespread distribution of the species in the region. The findings of the study suggest an urgent need for developing conservation and management plan for the species in the region for sustaining traditional health care system and pharmaceutical demand.

Valeriana jatamansi Jones and Hedychium spicatum Ham-ex-Smith are important medicinal herbs of the Himalayan region, which are highly demanded by pharmaceutical industries. Climatic variability especially increasing temperature and water deficit affects the growth and productivity of these species. In addition, increased temperature and water deficit may trigger the biosynthesis of medicinally important bioactive metabolites, which influence the quality of raw plant material and finished products. Therefore, V. jatamansi and H. spicatum plants were undertaken and subjected to different levels of drought (no irrigation), heat (35 °C), and combined stresses for investigating their physiological and metabolic responses. Both the treatments (individually and in combination) reduced relative water content, photosynthesis, carboxylation efficiency, chlorophyll content, while increased intracellular CO(2), malondialdehyde and H(2)O(2) content in both the species. Transpiration and stomatal conductance increased under heat and reduced under drought stress as compared to control. Water use efficiency was found to be increased under drought, while reduced under heat stress. Protein, proline, carotenoid content and antioxidant enzymes activities (superoxide dismutase, peroxidise, catalase) initially increased and thereafter decreased during late stages of stress. Exposure of plants to combined stress was more detrimental than individual stress. In V. jatamansi, exposure to drought stress significantly (p

Global mountains, including the Himalaya, are highly vulnerable ecosystems, especially given climate and land-use changes. Here, we compile the literature on Himalayan biodiversity in order to assess spatial and taxonomic trends in research during the past 200 years. We identified 35,316 research outputs, including 28,120 journal articles, 3,725 doctoral theses, and 3,471 books. Nepal contributes the largest volume of published literature, followed by west Himalayan Indian states, with relatively few studies on the most biodiverse region lying to the east of Nepal. Publications on Himalayan biodiversity research have increased annually, especially after 1970, with an acceleration since 2000. Among the major taxonomic groups, the largest number of publications is on seed plants (angiosperms), followed by invertebrates (especially arthropods) and vertebrates. Some groups of organisms, notably fungi, bacteria, algae, bryophytes, pteridophytes, etc., are clearly understudied. Among various research disciplines, ecology is the most dominant field followed by agriculture, ethnobiology, and paleontology. Some newer disciplines, including molecular biology and climate change, have contributed to the growth in the number of papers appearing during the last two decades. Despite an encouraging and rapid increase in research papers during this century, they are largely in low-impact-factor journals, likely to be subject to poor peer review, and many doctoral theses remain unpublished. The Government of India's development initiative emphasizes the importance of research in the Himalaya, which can be enhanced by improved quality of peer review and local journals registering in global indexing services.

Valeriana jatamansi is a medicinal herb generally known as Indian Valerian belongs to family Caprifoliaceae. This is an herbal plant blended with many medicinal properties such as stimulant, carminative, antispasmodic, cytotoxic and aromatic property. The herb is used in custom and advanced medicine system for curing various ailments and in flavor and perfume industries. In this study, brief phytochemical, traditional and pharmacological studies of species and prospects of the species in future are envisaged. This study also evaluated domestication and cultivation practices available on V. jatamansi. Six major groups of active constituents, namely valepotriates (145), lignans compound (18), flavones or its glycosides (18), sesquiterpenoids or its glycoside (12), bakkenolide-type sesquiterpenoids (6), phenolic constituents (6), miscellaneous compounds (12) and major oil constituents (294) have been listed from V. jatamansi. Several therapeutic properties, e.g., neurotoxic, cytotoxic, sedative, anti-inflammation, antidepressant, antidiarrheal, anti-HCV, adaptogenic, analgesic, antioxidant and antimicrobial effects and key compounds responsible for these properties have been described. The present study clearly indicated that this plant comprises huge potential for future research and drug development. Numerous active constituents discussed in the present study can be vital for further in vivo and in vitro experimentation. The study suggested the need to promote research on identification of active component from the species and their mechanism of action. Methods available for cultivation and domestication of V. jatamansi will be applicable for multiplication of this valuable species to meet out domestic and industrial demand. Findings from the study will be useful for conservation planning and sustainable uses of this valuable species.

Deforestation and forest degradation due to environmental change and anthropogenic pressure have resulted in significant reduction in the provision of valuable ecosystem goods and services. UNFCCC has emphasized forest conservation as a part of achieving sustainable development. These efforts have been reinforced through new global development agendas such as the Sustainable Development Goals (Goal 15) and the Aichi targets. A strong relationship between ecological restoration and the ecosystem services concept has been established, with the latter informing how ecological restoration may be planned and implemented. Deforestation and forest degradation in the Himalaya are a major concern. This region provides ecosystem goods and services to both upstream and downstream populations. International and national agencies and NGOs have been responding to the challenges of forest and environmental degradation through various planning activities and technologies. However, ecological restoration and rehabilitation of forests and degraded lands is the only viable strategy in the Himalaya to improve the environment, mitigate climate change impacts and support the livelihoods of natural resource dependent traditional communities. Large-scale failure of past efforts can be attributed by lack of a participatory strategy to determine the essential needs of the local population and gain their cooperation. GBP-NIHE has been active in the Indian Himalayan Region for over 25 years, significantly contributing to environmental conservation and sustainability, developing restoration models involving local people. This chapter describes ecological restoration undertaken by the Institute in the wasteland across the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR), to promote effective biodiversity conservation and sustainable development.

The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) is considered as a rich repository of the Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MAPs), and has diverse traditional and modern base of therapeutic knowledge. Inhabitants of the region are traditionally well familiar with the healing properties of the available plants and therefore, dependency on medicinal plants for primary healthcare forms integral part of their life. Besides, modern pharmaceutical industries are also relying upon medicinal plants for developing new drugs or searching novel biomolecules. However, over-harvesting and habitat loss of MAPs has reduced its population in the wild, and threatened the sustainability of a number of species in IHR. This calls for an urgent attention and requires selection of suitable criteria and indicators towards encouraging long-term economic and environmental sustainability of the MAP sector. In this context, this study focuses on identifying four major sustainability parameters; i.e. economic, environmental/ecological, socio-cultural and governance, with 11 criteria and 48 indicators. The criteria and indicators approach is expected to be useful in assessing the impacts and monitoring the developmental initiatives in the MAP sector. Further, the study also prioritized potential MAP species for linking cultivation and conservation with livelihood opportunity in Western Himalaya. A total of 152 potential MAP species were identified based on medicinal value, market demand, availability and uses in traditional herbal system. Of these, 43 potential MAPs have been prioritized for cultivation and conservation in Western Himalaya. In addition, distribution and diversity of threatened MAPs of IHR has been documented and presented in a manner to develop strategies for sustainability of the sector at state and national levels.

Quercus floribunda, an important western Himalayan oak, has a great ecological importance. As seeds are sensitive to moisture loss, seed maturation and germination is, therefore, synchronized with the commencement of monsoon rainfall. A delay in monsoon can thus drastically inhibit the recruitment of seedlings. However, the level of such sensitivity of seeds towards desiccation in Q. floribunda is not earlier studied in the region. In view of this gap, effects of desiccation on seed germination of Q. floribunda were examined across different moisture levels. Datasets on seed morphological characteristics, moisture content and seed germinability were recorded. Results indicated that seed likelihood sensitivity to desiccation (P) was much higher (0.84) in Q. floribunda as compared to suggested minimum value of (0.5) beyond which seeds are considered desiccation sensitive. The species is thus characterized as desiccation sensitive that significantly loses per cent germination with drying period. It is recommended that the seeds of Q. floribunda should be sown within 7 days, when the seed moisture content remains at critical level of 34%. These results have implications in forestry practice, conservation and management for coping with practical problems of storing Q. floribunda seeds.

In the Himalayan hills, woody plant species form a major source of fuelwood. This practice often leads to degradation of forests and raises several management issues. However, lack of adequate information about use patterns and species-level trends of utilization results in gaps in management planning and interventions. Realizing this, a detailed species-level quantification of annual extraction of fuelwood was conducted in Hat-Kalika watershed that represents west Himalayan conditions in India. Across nine surveyed villages, a total of 30 plants (26 trees, 4 shrubs) were being collected for fuel purpose by the inhabitants. Mean fuelwood collection by households ranged from 2916.4 (kg hh−1 year−1) in high-altitude villages to 1256.6 (kg hh−1 year−1) in low altitude. Among used species, probability of use was maximum for Pinus roxburghii (0.79 high-altitude, 0.89 mid-altitude and 0.82 low-altitude zone). Broadly, the tree species contributed 93.3% (low altitude) to 97.3% (high altitude) of annual fuelwood requirement of households. The quantum of collection was considerably higher from the native species compared to the non-natives. Study brings out the possible management implications of present trends of fuelwood collection in the study watershed in particular and mid-Himalaya watersheds of west Himalaya in general.

A plethora of information is available on biomass utilization for household energy need in different parts of world; however such information in cold desert region is very limited. The present study is first of its kind to provide information on biomass utilization, fuelwood species diversity, their regeneration status, and likely impact of fuelwood harvesting in cold desert area of the Kailash Sacred Landscape (KSL) in Indian part. Per Capita Fuelwood Consumption (PCFC) was maximum (5.4 ± 0.30 kg/capita/day) for villages at higher altitude (3800 m) as compared to low altitude (3000 m) village (2.2 ± 0.36 kg/capita/day) for present study. The energy values follow similar trend; maximum for higher altitude (106.4 MJ/capita/day) and minimum for low altitude (43.3 MJ/capita/day). The inhabitants use a total of 14 woody species (3 trees, 11 shrubs) as fuelwood in the cold desert part of KSL. Among these, with high Probability of Use (PU) Juniperus communis (0.86), Pinus wallichina (0.48) and Abies pindrow (0.47) emerged as preferred species and thereby having very high pressure. Likewise, the Resources Use Index (RUI) for fuelwood consumption remained high for Juniperus communis (759.5), Pinus wallichaina (479.2) and Abies pindrow (391). The regeneration status of preferred species and availability (i.e. density) of other species suggested that the long-term persistence of preferred fuelwood species in the landscape is in question. The study provides evidences that the exiting forests, alpine arid scrublands and pasture may face serious problem of degradation in near future if the current trends of fuelwood harvesting continues. This calls for policy and programme level interventions to protect the fuelwood resources and provide better options of energy to poor inhabitants of cold desert area in KSL part of India.

This study for the first time designed to optimize the extraction of polyphenolic compounds from rhizomes of Rheum moorcroftianum using response surface methodology (RSM). Solvent was selected based on the preliminary experiments, and a four-factors-three-level, Box–Behnken Design (BBD) including 29 experimental runs. The polyphenolic content and antioxidant activity was significantly (p

Polygonatum verticillatum (L.) All. is one among eight species of Astavarga group of plants known for its vitality strengthening properties and used in different herbal formulations. However, systematic investigation on morphology and antioxidant phytochemicals in relation to different environmental variables like altitude and habitat conditions is poorly available. The present study reveals significant (p < 0.05) differences in structural and functional attributes among sixteen different populations of P. verticillatum in West Himalaya. Among the different populations, plants growing in moist habitat and oak forest exhibited maximum plant height, leaf number, biomass and phytochemical content (total phenolics, tannin, and flavonol). Antioxidant activity using 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) positively (p < 0.05) correlated with altitude. Presence of strong antioxidant and DNA damage prevention activity of the species validate its use as vitality strengthening and anti-aging properties. Identified suitable altitude, habitat conditions, and forest types can be utilized for reintroduction of species in to suitable agro-climatic condition. This will also help in obtaining higher quality produce and management practices for conservation of this species.

Reverse phase-high performance liquid chromatography was used to estimate the berberine content of Berberis jaeschkeana. The root and bark samples were harvested from different habitats (i.e., rocky and grassy), along an altitudinal gradient. The results revealed the presence of significantly (p