Himachal farmers pioneer sustainable cultivation of endangered Himalayan herb ‘Kutki’
Farmers in Himachal Pradesh are adopting a sustainable harvesting method for the endangered medicinal herb 'Kutki'. By collecting only the plant's stolons rather than uprooting the entire plant, they are helping conserve the species while supporting the local economy.
Why it matters
This initiative demonstrates a successful model for balancing biodiversity conservation with rural economic development in fragile Himalayan ecosystems.
In the higher reaches of the Himalayas, an agricultural initiative is helping bring one of the region’s most prized medicinal plants back from the brink of extinction. Decades of destructive wild harvesting pushed Picrorhiza kurroa , known locally as Kutki, a herb used in medicinal formulations, onto the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. Now, a sustainable cultivation model adopted by farmers in Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi district is showing promising signs of conserving the species while boosting the rural mountain economy.
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