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Herbal formulation for treating bloat in animals
Sakrabhai Kalubhai Baria, Kapuriben Sardarsingh Baraiya
Dahod, Gujarat

5th National Grassroots Innovation - 2009

 Innovator Profile

Dahod district is predominantly rural and majority of the residents are tribals, mostly Bhils.  Agriculture is the principal activity of the district, which is one of the largest wholesale grains market in Gujarat. Sakrabhai’s village is a small one with a population around 300. The villagers mostly engage themselves in agricultural activities, rearing animal and working as daily wage labourers.

 

Sakrabhai owns 2.5 acres of land where he grows rice and pulses, used for self-consumption for his family comprising his wife and son’s wife and children. The main source of income for the family is his son who works as a daily wager in Ahmedabad. He also has few cattle heads whose products are consumed domestically.

 

His father, a farmer, was also an adept traditional healer. Sakrabhai’s learning started early observing his father practicing herbal medicines. Gradually, the interest in him to develop medications for animals started to grow. By the time he turned 18, he was already giving medicines under the guidance of his father. His hard work and dedication, over so many years, has earned for him a lot of social capital. But all this was not easy, remarks Sakrabhai. Recalling his first failure while treating a case of prolapse, he mentions that the remorse made him work harder. With time his reputation grew and now people even mention that he can cure an animal just by touching it.

 

Though he is not well-off yet he does not charge any money for his medications.  Somehow his family members are not convinced of his free practice at all. They believe that people who can afford the cost of medications should be charged while for others, who cannot pay, the services can be free. This is quite understandable given their economic condition. But Sakrabhai believes that his social status has increased in the community due to his selfless service and continues undeterred.

 

Sakrabhai recently participated in the 23rd Shodh Yatra in Dahod (Gujarat) and Alirajpur (Madhya Pradesh) in May-June 2009. He walked barefoot all the way, and citing his example, he exhorted other herbal healers to share their knowledge for the development of new drugs and the betterment of the society.

 

Kapuriben was born in Jambusar village, the youngest among five siblings- all girls. Education for girls was never a priority for her parents, so she was always absorbed in household activities and farming. The family grew maize, black gram, groundnut and rice on their small piece of land.  At the age of 16 she got married to Sardarsingh of Dahod.  Here also she assisted her father-in-law in his farm to grow rice, black gram, maize, pigeon pea and groundnut.  Along with farming, her father-in-law-Rupsingh Patel, also had interest in animal health.  He used to treat animals for bloat and taught the same practice to Kapuriben.  She took care of agriculture and animals efficiently as her mother-in-law died just a month after her marriage. Presently, she lives with her husband, a son, daughter-in-law and three grandchildren. 

 

Sakrabhai and Kapuriben use a local herb to cure bloat within a very short time. Bloat is a medical condition in which the stomach becomes overstretched by excessive gas content.  This gas is generated as a result of the anaerobic microbial fermentation processes taking place in the rumen (front part of the stomach in ruminants). It is a serious medical condition and results in mortality if not treated properly. Earlier studies on the local herb indicate that the plants of the genus possess hepatotoxic activity and anthelmintic activity. However, no such report was found for treating bloat. Similar search in the patent literature also did not yield any result.

 

Simultaneously, NIF facilitated the validation of the practice at Bombay Veterinary College, where the dosage standardization was also carried out. Subsequently, a product was developed under the brand name Blotomin. The details about the same have been shared with Karnataka Antibiotics, a Government of India agency for which technology licensing is being discussed.

 

Meanwhile back home Sakrabhai and Kapuriben are happily doing what they know the best i.e. treating veterinary cases with all their knowledge and skill. Even at this prime age and responsibilities, they do surprise everyone with their energy and enthusiasm.

 

Sakrabhai (80) is an illiterate farmer and a herbal healer from a small backward village of Dahod district in Gujarat. Kapuriben (60) is a house wife with a lot of expertise in providing herbal medications. They have developed a herbal practice to prevent and cure bloat in animals. 

Complete Specification Filed , 202/MUM/2007