Carissa kopilii: A new Plant Species found in Assam 

Carissa kopilii: A new Plant Species found in Assam 

Part of: GS-Prelims and Mains GS-III- Environment 

Key points:

• Carissa kopilii is a wilder variety of the more familiar Carissa carandas (also known as karonda in Hindi, kalakkai in Tamil, koromcha in Bengali and karja tenga in Assamese) 
• Carissa kopilii is distributed sparsely along the Kopili riverbed at altitudes ranging from 85-600 metres above sea level. 
• Kopili River is an interstate river that flows through the states of Meghalaya and Assam and is the largest south bank tributary of the Brahmaputra in Assam 
• The plant is threatened by a hydroelectric project on the river and water turned acidic because of coal mining in Meghalaya upstream. 

Did You Know? 

•  The Carissa carandas was among several thorny plants the British used for a 1,100-mile barrier – called Great Hedge of India-  apparently to enforce taxes and stop the smuggling of salt.  
• Carissa carandas has been used as a traditional herbal medicine for a number of ailments such as diarrhoea, anaemia, constipation, indigestion, skin infections and urinary disorders.