Recently, a 'Buddhist village' in Charaideo district of eastern Assam has adopted ‘Chala Reserve Forest’ to conserve the traditional sources of colours. This forest is about 100 m above the sea level. But, few species of orchids have been found here, which are generally found at higher altitudes.
In the year 2018, monks of a 152-year-old Buddhist monastery located in Chalapather Shyam Gaon, Assam, expressed concern over the 'extinction in the forests' of the Bhungloti plant. After this, the monks started a movement for the protection of the traditional sources of colors, as a result of which the nearby Chala Reserve Forest, spread over an area of about 683 hectares under the Sivasagar Forest Division, was declared as 'Chala Village Sanctuary'.
Under this, a 'Van Suraksha Dal' was formed consisting of 22 members of the village, whose task is to help the Forest Department in conserving these forests.
It is noteworthy that Bhungloti is a creeper, which is combined with a substance found in the root of the jackfruit tree to obtain 'saffron colour'. This color is mainly used in the manufacture of robes for Buddhist monks in Assam.