VISAKHAPATNAM: Scores of indigenous plant species with medicinal
value are vanishing from the Eastern Ghats and coastal regions
of Andhra Pradesh as indiscriminate exploitation and
unscientific method of extracting these plants is hampering
their regeneration and resulting in escalation of costs of
herbal medicines. Biodiversity in the region is being adversely
affected by untrained locals extracting medicinal plants
unscientifically, without planting and seeding, at the behest of
middlemen who are associated with herbal product exporters or
Ayurvedic drug manufacturers, point out experts. "Plants like
Saptarangi, one of the very few herbs used in anti-diabetic
medicines that is found in the marshy lands, is becoming scarce
and so is Sidacordisolia that is used for arthritis and
rheumatic disorders and is found in the Eastern Ghats," said
ayurvedic physician K Jayakrishna. V Susheela, an ayurvedic
doctor from Sree Aurvedic Hospital, said, "Plants such as
Satavari used for curing gynaecological disorders, Sari