Caterpillar Fungus: Reason for Chinese Border Violations

NEW DELHI: The Chinese troops have broken border regulations several times in the last few years and these actions have caused tensions to rise between the two nations. But the Indo-Pacific Centre for Strategic Communications has put the reason for this at something very far from any military motive. They have mentioned that Chinese soldiers often make illegal entries into Indian territory to collect Caterpillar fungus.

Cordyceps, also known as caterpillar fungus found in the Himalayan region and the Qinghai-Tibetian Platue in South Western China. It is of great importance to the traditional medicines of China and is said to cost more than even gold. To meet the growing need for this product among the vast Chinese population, the soldiers of the People's Liberation Army often transgress into the Indian side to steal the same. Locals believe that it has a range of benefits ranging from curing impotence to digestion-related issues.

It is a parasitic fungus that feeds on the larva of different insects. It infects the larvae of ghost moths and takes over the body before outgrowing the host body and breaking out from the head. Reports say that it is extremely difficult to near impossible to commercially cultivate this under controlled conditions.

Being the only consumer community of this product, it is not surprising that China is the largest producer and consumer of Caterpillar fungi in the world. But in recent years, its production had declined and the demand has increased leading to the over-exploitation of their own resources.

Its heavy demand can be judged from the fact that 10 gm packings fetch about $700 in the Chinese market, while the same amount of gold costs $500. Around 80% of the household income from the Tibetian Plateau and the Himalayas on the Chinese side comes from these parasitic fungi.

Also Read: Arunachal Pradesh: BRO Stepping Up Infrastructure Development In Border Area To Counter Chinese Invasion

Also Watch: