Over 5,000 kg illicit khair timber seized

NAINITAL: In a major seizure, nearly 5,000 kg of illicit khair timber (senegalia catechu) was seized by a forest division team on Sunday in Banna Khera area of Ramnagar. The market value of the seized catechu is said to be more than Rs 10 lakh.
“Acting on a tip-off, a team was deployed to seize the timber and catch the smugglers. We were able to seize the vehicle and catechu but the miscreants managed to escape,” Kehkashan Naseem, divisional forest officer, Ramnagar forest division told TOI.
The plant is used for various purposes like extracting ‘Kattha’, an essential ingredient of ‘paan’, a popular north-Indian chewable.
Kattha is derived from an acacia species, locally called as known as khair, that grows abundantly in Una district. After felling, the outer bark of the stem is removed, revealing the dark-coloured heartwood, which is chipped into small pieces and boiled to separate ‘kattha‘ from the wood. According to rough estimates, one quintal of heartwood gives about 10 kg of ‘kattha’.
The heartwood and bark of the tree are used in traditional medicine. A wood extract called catechu is used in traditional medicine for sore throats and diarrhoea.
In ayurveda, it is used for rasayana (rejuvenation treatments). It is also used for its actions like anti-dyslipidemic, anthelminthic, anti-inflammatory, anti-diuretic, anti-pruritic, coolant, taste promoting, enhancing digestion and curing skin disorders.