ABSTRACT
Man has been long associated with plant kingdom from the time of his existence. Ethno-botany has emerged as an important branch in advanced biotechnology. Ethno-botany concentrates on the efficacy of various herbal species and their applications in medicine, food, and other purposes. These medicinal plants are not only cost efficient, but also safe and nearly free from severe side effects. Over the last few decades, the traditional knowledge on the utility of medicinal plants has been widely acknowledged across the globe. In this context, Indian village farmers, elders have notable knowledge toward health issues and corresponding remedial capabilities of medicinal herbs. In India, Uttarakhand is located in the western Himalayan region and has traditionally been famed for various medicinal plants. Realizing their importance, this review chapter emphasizes on significant features of traditional utilizations of medicinal plants for curing various diseases among communities in different districts in the north-western region of Himalayas, India. This chapter also represented about marketing of medicinal plants and herbal medicines, originated from North-Western Region of Himalayas, India. The study has been supported by our field study which has been carried out in various villages of different districts in the Garhwal and Kumaoun regions of Uttarakhand, part of north-western region of Himalayas, India. The present study records 74 species of ethno-medicinal plants along with their families. It may believe that, however, this chapter describes the 224traditional knowledge about medicinal plants in the north-western region of Himalayas, India. It will play a great role in herbal medicine and advanced plant biotechnology.
