PATNA, Feb. 20 -- State health minister Mangal Pandey has said that the government intends to turn the abundant Arjun trees of North Bihar into a major driver of rural employment and herbal medicine production, informing the state assembly on Friday that the tree's bark holds enormous potential for both traditional Ayurvedic remedies and modern heart-care products.

Replying to a calling attention motion moved by Alinagar MLA Maithili Thakur, Pandey described Terminalia arjuna - commonly known as Arjun - as "an important medicinal tree whose bark has been used for centuries in Ayurveda and increasingly in allopathic systems, especially for cardiac ailments." He pointed out that the tree grows prolifically across several districts of North...