Int. J. of Usuf. Mngt. 14 (2): 107-117 (2013) ISSN 0972-3927 Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, College of Agriculture, IGKV, Raipur -12, Chhattisgarh, India* Doon (P.G.) College of Agricultural Science and Technology, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India 2 . Department of Genetics, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Mohanpur, West Bengal, India 3 . Corresponding Author’s and Present Organization: Division: R & D, Bayer Bioscience Pvt. Ltd. Hyderabad. A STUDY ON POTENTIAL AND POSSIBILITIES FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITATION OF TAL (BORASSUS FLABELLIFER LINN.) FOR THE LIVELIHOOD AND SUSTAINABILITY OF RURAL AND TRIBAL PEOPLE OF WEST BENGAL S. C. Ghosh*, M. Singh 2 and A. Haldar 3 ABSTRACT With concern to the biological-economic views among the minor fruit species the Borassus flabellifer L. (Tal) also carry vital role with its utilities from ancient India to recent times; in Ayurvedic medicines, handicraft, hard wood and religious activities specially in the tribal and rural communities. It has a wider range of uses of fruit (raw and ripen both), leaves /foliages, trunk, petiole, seed, fiber, juice in the form; food, fiber, tal-giri (jelly like early endosperm), geg (germinated seed’s spongy tissue), natural beverage (tari), michhiri, hard wood, raw material for making of various types of thatch, fen, brush, hunting trap, rope, mat, doll, hat and it’s carries special value in the tribal and rural areas. It interests the horticulturist/forester/agriculturist as a guard crop/plantation /ornamental crop for its canopy, foliage, trunk, stability and less spacing. It is found in wider range from lower to up-land, tropical to sub-tropical, acidic to alkaline in forest, degraded, wetland and barren land areas. Integrated development of Tal products for local and export markets, as well as management, conservation, are needed to maximize the economic value of the products and to assure sustainable yield and tal based farming system for the sustainable development in the soil- problematic areas. Therefore, the Tal plant carries sufficient scope for the commercial exploitation by utilizing as nutritious food, folk-medicine, raw material for cottage and handicraft industries, ornamental and long duration crop for sustainable development. Keywords: Borassus flabellifer L., minor fruit, medicinal, commercial, exploitation, uses, nutrients, rural- tribal, sustainability INTRODUCTION India has a wider range of floristic diversity, among them Borassus flabellifer L. is one of the minor fruit species found in all over India (more or less in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa, Kerala, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil & Nadu and Peninsular India, except in temperate zones and desert land) (Anderson, 1978). It is commonly known as Tar, Tal, Char Palm, Brab Tree and Aupana (Sood & Kanshal, 2008). The intensity of occurrence of the specie is more in south India compared to other parts. B. flabellifer L. in Tamil Nadu is known as state tree. Tal palm is multipurpose specie in Southeast Asia just as it is in South Asia with a wider distribution. Most tapped palm trees do not only produce sap but are multipurpose i.e. edible fruits, building materials, fuel, fibers, medicinal etc. It is socio-economically important for the rural. Gandhi used to call B. flabellifer