Collection and Processing of Non-timber Forest Products in North Eastern Pakistan of Azad Jammu and Kashmir: An Empirical Study

Himalayan region has diversity of Non-Timber Forest Products and is considered as biodiversity hotspot. Current research is baseline study providing information on extraction and processing of Non-Timber Forest Products especially medicinal plants in North Eastern Pakistan of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. A total of 60 respondents (local collectors) were selected based on snowball sampling procedure. Results revealed that income generation remained the prime reason for collection of Non-Timber Forest Products in both regions and collectors have to travel up to 4-6km for collection. Most (i.e.,91%) of the respondents collected Non-Timber Forest Products for medicinal reasons in Bagh District whereas vegetable collection (i.e.,86%) is the prime reason for collection in Neelam valley. Non-Timber Forest Products are mostly collected manually during summer for 6-10 hours with frequency of 1-3 times in a season. It was also observed that most of the respondents in Bagh district opted for sun drying whereas sun and shade drying remained a preference of respondents in Neelam valley. It was concluded that a public-private partnership is inevitable for sustainable harvesting, processing and marketing of Non-Timber Forest Products in the region.