Sundarbans’ vanishing pharmacy threatens traditional healing
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Suranjan Raptan, a traditional healer (kabiraj) in Koyra Upazila, Bangladesh, journeys into the Sundarbans mangrove forest to collect medicinal plants, a practice passed down through generations.
For 21 years, he has relied on the forest as his pharmacy, gathering leaves, roots, and bark to treat his community. However, Suranjan now finds it increasingly difficult to locate the plants he needs, as rising salinity and cyclones are damaging the forest ecosystem.
The decline of medicinal plants coincides with the expansion of modern healthcare access in Bangladesh. While community clinics and pharmacies offer convenient alternatives, many villagers, particularly the elderly and those with limited resources, still depend on Suranjan’s traditional remedies. He observes that fewer patients seek his care, and the plants themselves are becoming scarce.
Experts like Professor Md Abdur Rahim at Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University note that the changing forest composition, with salt-tolerant species replacing medicinal ones, represents a cultural loss alongside an ecological one. Other kabiraj are aging and retiring, and their knowledge is not being widely passed on to younger generations.
Suranjan himself is attempting to cultivate a medicinal garden, but even with rainwater harvesting, the increasing salinity poses a challenge to his efforts, threatening a centuries-old tradition and the wellbeing of the community he serves.
