Patayat Sahu

Pataet Kumar Sahu, also known as Patayat Sahu, is a traditional vaidya, or herbal healer, from western Odisha known for growing and documenting medicinal plants. He was named for the Padma Shri in 2023, from Odisha ^[1].

A garden on 1.5 acres

Sahu was born on 18 August 1955 into a farming family in Nandol village, Kalahandi district, and money troubles ended his schooling after the eleventh class ^[2]. His grandfather, Gobarddhan Sahu, was a traditional healer, and from him Sahu picked up a love of plants as a child ^[2].

On an acre and a half of his own land he has built a garden of about 3,200 rare plant varieties, which botany students from many colleges visit for field classes ^[2]. He has also built up a library of 921 books on Ayurveda, open to all, where discussions are held every day, and he writes about plants for health magazines ^[2].

Healers’ groups and a school garden

Under his guidance, a group of 132 traditional healers from across the district, the Susruta Baidya Sangh, was formed at Chhatikuda in 1999, and another association followed in 2000 ^[2]. He adopted the Phup Jhudi primary school, set up a “green health troop” there and planted 200 plant varieties on its campus, where he teaches children about plants ^[2].

He was part of a survey team that recorded 350 rare plants in the Ghana forest, and he has documented many medicinal plants with photographs in three large registers for future generations ^[2]. The Prime Minister spoke about this work on Mann Ki Baat on 26 September 2021 ^[2]. The Odisha forest department named him a Prakruti Bandhu for 2009–10 ^[2].