HP: Kullu man cultivates Himalayan herb 'Keeda Jadi' inside lab, plans to mint money

Gaurav Sharma said that he has prepared the herb in 3000 boxes in the first phase. After drying them up, Gaurav is all set to sell the wild mushroom to a company in Bangalore. He cultivated the herb in 45 days and claims that it has medicinal value.

Kullu: In a significant development, a man from Himachal Pradesh's Kullu, has reportedly prepared the rare Himalayan medicinal herb Keeda Jadi inside a laboratory. Keeda Jadi is called Caterpillar fungus in English for its shape resembling a caterpillar with the scientific name of Cordyceps militaris is called Yarsagumba in Tibet.

While no research has been done on insects found in inaccessible areas in India, there is a great demand for the Keeda Jadi herb in China. While the rare herb is usually found at a height of 3,600 to 5,000 meters above sea level in the Himalayan region in Uttarakhand, a man from Kullu has claimed to have synthetically prepared the herb in the lab.

Gaurav Sharma from Kullu has prepared this mushroom by setting up a lab at his home. He said he has prepared the herb in 3000 boxes in the first phase. After drying them up, Gaurav is all set to sell the wild mushroom to a company in Bangalore. He cultivated the herb in 45 days and said that it has medicinal value.

Gaurav said that due to the “high immunity booster” of the herb, “China is making the most of it for its players”. Gaurav Sharma said that the price of the herb is Rs 3-5 lakh in the Indian market whereas, in the international market, its price is pegged around Rs 20 to 25 lakh per kg. He said that he has been working on the technology of growing the herb for one and a half years adding he has 'succeeded in the efforts.'

He said that he got the idea to grow the herb from a friend living in Malaysia. Gaurav will give training to farmers in the coming days. Satish Kumar, Principal Scientist, Directorate of Mushroom Research, Solan said that the directorate is also providing training to the farmers. He said that due to a lack of information on the herb, it's marketing in India is negligible.

Keeda Jadi is said to be used as a natural steroid effective in increasing sexual power. For this reason, it is also known as Himalayan viagra. The herb is also considered very effective in the treatment of diseases like cancer. According to Ayurveda, it is also used to cure respiratory and kidney diseases.