Documentation of Food Plants from Kodalbasti Forest Villege under Chilapata Forest of Coochbehar Subdivision, Kalchini Block, Alipurduar District, West Bengal:Aspects and Prospects in the Context of Food Security

Abstract

Due to population growth and increase in demand for various products of natural sources, exploitation has escalated to unprecedented heights. Besides growing a few crops, economically weaker people frequently collect wild edible plants for food and other plants from natural habitats to meet their subsistence needs. Investigation on wild edible plants as supplementary food resources holds promise since these plants often have medicinal properties of excellence. In view of this the present work was undertaken during 2016-2017 following standard ethnobotanical methods in Kodalbasti forest village under Chilapata forested areas of Alipurduar district of West Bengal, India. It is about 22 km away from Alipurduar and is a tourist destination and a part of Chilapata forest. The village is lying between 95o 15´ E and 93o 20´ North. Wild edible plants refer to the species that are neither cultivated nor domesticated but are available from their natural habitat and used as a sources of food and vegetables. The food plants are mainly used by the local inhabitant like- Rabha, Meach, Kooch, Rajbanshi, Santhal, Nepali, Kharia, Munda, Oraon.