ITK based fish catching practices through use of plant based materials by the tribal communities in Arunachal Pradesh, under eastern Himalayan zone of India

Indigenous Technological Knowledge (ITK) is the knowledge that has been developed over the time by the people of a specific community of a region for betterment of their life and livelihood and is based on experience befitting the local culture, custom, available resource and environmental conditions. It is often holistic, culturally embedded, and expressed through diverse forms like stories, laws, and traditions. This dynamic knowledge is vital for community survival, cultural identity, and sustainable development, providing insights into local ecologies and societal well-being. In fact it is not just an information system in general but a complex system encompassing spiritual, social, cultural, economic, and environmental dimensions, deeply connected to a specific environment and the conditions of a particular community. Among different tribal communities in Arunachal the fishery based ITK is predominantly related to farm inputs has been developed by the farmers themselves, based on their experiences learned from their ancestors. For the study of these Indigenous Technological Knowledge, (ITK) the different villages were selected randomly among 10 districts of Arunachal Pradesh i.e. Tawang, West Kameng, East Kameng, Pakke Kessang, Papumpare, Lower Subansiri, Upper Subansiri, East Siang, West Siang and Aalo formerly known as along during 2023 to 2025. As per survey records it has been found that the maximum 11 nos. of plants bark are used followed by 10 nos. of plants fruit, 9 nos. of plant leaf and whole plant, while 6 nos. of plant roots followed by the 5 nos. of plant seeds are used for the catching of fishes. It has also been recorded that the 1 plant flower and 1plant stem used for the same which is very less in comparison to others plant parts used.