Vol. 12, Issue 10 (2023)

Author(s):
Prasanlata Arya

Abstract:
Indigenous knowledge is a repository of technologies; know how skill, practices and beliefs accumulated over generations. Women are a rich repository or a storehouse of indigenous knowledge provides locally, manageable, sustainable and cost-effective survival strategies for local community. Bikaner district was selected for the study because Bikaner comes under arid zone and vast variability of traditional and indigenous practices was found in this area. Therefore a study was taken on Documentation and validation of indigenous practices regarding child care practices in Bikaner district of Rajasthan in the year 2016. It was found that indigenous practices regarding to care of child followed by majority of the respondents such as first food given to new born baby was (Jaggery, jaggery and ajwain, ajwain, jaggery and desi ghee and goat milk), given first mother milk (colostrums) to their baby, in bath practices (temperature of bath water according to season, massage of baby with mustard oil), tied neem leaves at gate, used Rai pillow, indigenous treatment given in general diseases i.e. stomach pain, cold constipation, diarrhea, fever and rashes etc. All these practices considered logically correct by the experts’ field of Ayurveda.