UTILIZATION PATTERN OF FOREST RESOURCES: EVIDENCE FROM THE FRINGE VILLAGES OF MANAS NATIONAL PARK, NORTHEAST INDIASimi TalukdarAbstract The present study based in the Manas National Park (MNP), explored the different resource utilization pattern by the ethnic communities, namely, Bodo of Kochubil (KB), Assamese of Borpothar (BP), Nepali of Kahitama (KT), Adivashi of Barangabari (BB), and Bengali of Bishnupur (BN) village. Mixed method of data collection includes structured and semi-structured questionnaires, addressing to the respondents with face-to-face interview was conducted. Among the resources, fuelwood is found to be the most important resource in all the study villages. Out of 110 species (belonging to 60 families), herb comprises the most used life-form, while leaves are widely used plant parts. Bodo (27%) people were widely using the forest resources compared to Assamese (25%), Nepali (17%), Adivashi (18%) and Bengali (13%). Among ethnobotanical indices, highest FL value reported for Azadirachta indica (85.9%), while Dillenia indica (73.02%)showed highest PR value. |