Paper Details

Name: Santosh Kumar, Dinesh Kumar Bharti &Anshuman Awasthi
Country: India

Year: 2025
Volume: Volume-12, Issue-2 (July-December)
Page Number: 500-526
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20744047

This review synthesises research on floristic evaluation of traditionally significant plants of Ayodhya to address fragmented knowledge on plant diversity, cultural relevance, and conservation challenges. The review aimed to evaluate floristic diversity and traditional uses, benchmark ethnobotanical documentation methods, identify medicinal and ritualistic applications, compare conservation strategies, and examine sacred groves’ roles in biodiversity preservation. Literature was selected based on ethnobotanical, medicinal, cultural, and conservation studies from Ayodhya and comparable Indian regions, employing qualitative and quantitative analyses including ethnobotanical indices. Findings reveal rich species diversity dominated by key botanical families, with extensive documentation of medicinal, ritualistic, and sociocultural uses validated through indices like Use Value and Informant Consensus Factor. Sacred groves emerge as critical biodiversity reservoirs and cultural heritage sites, yet face threats from modernisation and erosion of traditional practices. Conservation assessments highlight habitat loss and overexploitation, underscoring
gaps in empirical data and integration of traditional knowledge into formal policies.
Methodological inconsistencies and limited comparative analyses constrain robust synthesis, while knowledge transmission is predominantly oral and declining among younger generations. Collectively, these findings underscore the need for standardised,
multidisciplinary approaches that integrate ethnobotanical knowledge with conservation and sustainable management frameworks. This synthesis informs strategies to preserve Ayodhya’s biological diversity and indigenous knowledge systems amid socio-economic transformations.