{"id":349509,"date":"2025-12-16T19:08:10","date_gmt":"2025-12-16T19:08:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/349509\/"},"modified":"2025-12-16T19:08:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T19:08:10","slug":"sanjeevani-hills-odisha-is-planning-to-develop-an-ayurvedic-paradise-that-has-2500-rare-herbs-and-medicines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/349509\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Sanjeevani’ hills: Odisha is planning to develop an ‘Ayurvedic paradise’ that has 2,500 rare herbs and medicines"},"content":{"rendered":"

Odisha<\/a> is turning to Gandhamardan hill<\/a>, a quiet western Odisha landmark, to drive jobs and economic growth. The hill, rich in medicinal herbs, could soon become the centrepiece of the state\u2019s push to emerge as a hub for ayurvedic and herbal medicine. The effort comes as the global ayurveda market is booming, projected to jump from $19 billion in 2025 to $46 billion by 2030, a TOI report by Riyan Ramanath V stated. Jogeswar Dharua, a local vaidya, sums up the sentiment: \u201cA place where healing begins.\u201dA living pharmacy
\u201cGandhamardan may not dazzle the eye like postcard peaks, but it is a living pharmacy, a sanctuary of traditional healing,\u201d says Tekendra Jal, an activist working to conserve the hill. Local vaidyas set up small stalls stacked with herbal cures, foraging rare plants on daily treks up the slopes. Each journey, Jal adds, \u201cadds to the hill\u2019s mystique. No two visits are ever the same.\u201d
The hill and its surroundings boast 2,200\u20132,500 species of herbs, 350 of which are considered especially important, according to Odisha\u2019s State Medicinal Plant Board (SMPB).
A global visionThe state government plans to cultivate medicinal plants over 25,000 acres, aiming to make Odisha a leading producer while providing sustainable livelihoods. \u201cIn our five-year plan, cultivating medicinal plants over 25,000 acres at Gandhamardan would help establish Odisha as one of India\u2019s leading medicinal plant-producing states while providing sustainable livelihoods for thousands of farming families,\u201d said SMPB CEO V Karthik.<\/p>\n

The idea gained momentum during the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention in Bhubaneswar in January, when non-resident Indians from Odisha highlighted Gandhamardan\u2019s potential. Adrish Brahmadatt, an ayurveda professor at Mahidol University, Thailand, stressed urgency: \u201cGandhamardan\u2019s rare herbs are dwindling \u2014 some are vanishing altogether. The SMPB\u2019s strategy offers a lifeline for their collection and conservation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ETLive Events
Local roots matterTraditional medicine practitioners welcome the move. \u201cFor four decades, I have been trekking the Gandhamardan. From the Harishankar end of the hill to Nrusinghanath, the two ancient shrines, I\u2019ve scaled the hill several times during my younger days. It is time we took the Gandhamardan herbs to the international market,\u201d said Harishankar Seth, a vaidya.
At the same time, locals and environmentalists stress that the ecology and tribal communities must be protected. In the 1980s, a grassroots movement stopped a mining project by Bharat Aluminium Company (Balco). Today, Gandhamardan is a designated biodiversity heritage site. \u201cMore emphasis should be laid on scientific study and new mechanisms for the exchange of knowledge between locals and the global ayurveda experts,\u201d said Bibhuti Bhusan Mund, secretary of Gandhamardan Vanaspati Vana Society.From local herbs to global brands
Odisha aims to blend traditional knowledge with modern innovation. Karthik said, \u201cGandhamardan will remain the focal point. We are set to establish strategic partnerships with institutions such as the Bengaluru-based Foundation for Revitalisation of Local Health Traditions, Institute of Rural Management Anand, and MS Swaminathan Research Foundation. Odisha is poised to take a lead in the herbal industry, blending traditional knowledge with modern innovation to build a thriving economic and ecological model.\u201d<\/p>\n

Initial funding comes from Odisha Forestry Sector Development Society (OFSDS), with expansion planned through collaboration with AYUSH and Panchayati Raj departments. Officials are also exploring branding options such as \u2018Odisha Herbs\u2019 and \u2018Kalinga Herbs.\u2019 \u201cA strong brand identity must reflect quality, authenticity, and sustainability, while showcasing the state\u2019s unique biodiversity,\u201d said an SMPB officer.<\/p>\n

The state is moving from wild collection to organised cultivation, forming community-based institutions to ensure sustainability and fair compensation for collectors. Officials said herb selection would consider market demand, cultivation feasibility, conservation status, and livelihood potential.
(Source: TOI)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Odisha is turning to Gandhamardan hill, a quiet western Odisha landmark, to drive jobs and economic growth. The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":349510,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[32860,49,48,151965,84,377,88398,151966,151967],"class_list":{"0":"post-349509","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-ayurvedic-medicine","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-canada","11":"tag-gandhamardan-hill","12":"tag-health","13":"tag-medication","14":"tag-odisha","15":"tag-odisha-gandhamardan-hill","16":"tag-sanjeevani-gandhamardan-hill"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349509","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=349509"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349509\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/349510"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=349509"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=349509"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=349509"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}