PATNA, Feb. 21 -- Bihar health minister Mangal Pandey said on Friday that the government plans to harness the abundant Arjun trees of North Bihar as a major driver of rural employment and herbal medicine production. He informed the state Assembly that the tree's bark has significant potential for both traditional Ayurvedic remedies and modern heart-care products. Replying to a calling attention motion moved by Alinagar MLA Maithili Thakur, Pandey described Terminalia arjuna - commonly known as Arjun - as "an important medicinal tree whose bark has been used for centuries in Ayurveda and increasingly in allopathic systems, especially for cardiac ailments." He pointed out that the tree grows prolifically across several districts of North Bihar, making it a ready-made economic and therapeutic asset for the state. The minister said the Bihar State Medicinal Plants Board is already working on conservation, scientific harvesting, value addition and marketing of medicinal plants. "We will ensure full compliance with biodiversity norms, forest laws and sustainable harvesting standards," he added. Pandey announced that his department would soon coordinate with the environment, forest and climate change, agriculture and industries departments to prepare a practical roadmap so that collection, processing and branding of Arjun-based products could generate jobs while strengthening Bihar's position in the herbal sector. Maithili Thakur had painted a vivid picture of the tree's spread in her constituency and other parts of North Bihar. "This is not just any tree; it is a big economic and Ayurvedic treasure for the state,"Maithili said....