DAMAULI: Commercial cultivation of the rare medicinal plant ‘Sarpagandha’ (Rauwolfia serpentina) has started in Devghat Rural Municipality.
The Madhuban Community Forest Users Committee of Devghat-5 has planted 8,000 ‘Sarpagandha’ saplings for the first time in the district on four ropanis of land.
The Division Forest Office invested Rs. 400,000, while the Community Forest Group contributed Rs. 110,000 for the sapling plantation, said the group’s chairman, Dilliram Adhikari.
In the same ward, the Chakrabarti Community Forest Group planted 4,000 saplings, and the Raniban group planted 1,000 saplings.
Previously used for timber plantations, these community forests have now begun cultivating ‘Sarpagandha’, an important and rare herb.
Meanwhile, Kalika Community Forest of Devghat-5 and Sunjhakri Community Forest of Ward No. 1 have started protecting naturally growing ‘Sarpagandha’ plants on their lands.
Adhikari explained that the commercial cultivation aims to recognize the importance and benefits of ‘Sarpagandha’ and to increase the income of the community forests.
Tuknath Adhikari, chairman of the Chakrabarti Community Forest Group, added that they cleared bushes from the forest to plant this valuable herb.
Keshav Chandra Neupane, Secretary of the Community Forest Users’ Federation, Gandaki Province, emphasized the need for community forests to explore various income sources.
Krishna Prasad Bhatta, Chief of the Subdivision Forest Office, Devghat, said the forest users were informed about the significance of ‘Sarpagandha’ before starting commercial cultivation.
“Earlier, many considered it a mere bush and destroyed it. After raising awareness about its value and benefits, community foresters have now begun cultivating it commercially,” he said.
Since ‘Sarpagandha’ thrives only at altitudes between 200 and 500 meters, Bhatta noted that cultivation is limited to community forests in Wards 1 and 5 of Devghat.
The plant’s roots contain key alkaloids—reparpin, serpentine, and ajmaline—that are effective in treating conditions such as high blood pressure, insomnia, depression, mental agitation, and epilepsy. Thus, it is valued as a safe, natural medicine.
As this is the first commercial cultivation of ‘Sarpagandha’ in Devghat, saplings were purchased from Janakpur and Sarlahi at Rs. 50 per plant.
The herb is among 30 medicinal plants prioritized by the government for economic development, with an export customs rate fixed at Rs. 50 per kilogram.
If properly nurtured, the community forests in Devghat are expected to earn hundreds of thousands of rupees annually from the sale of ‘Sarpagandha’ roots within two years.
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