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Arsenic (As) is a metalloid prevalent mainly in soil and water. The presence of As above permissible levels becomes toxic and detrimental to living organisms, therefore, making it a significant global concern. Humans can absorb As through drinking polluted water and consuming As-contaminated food material grown in soil having As problems. Since human beings are mobile organisms, they can use clean uncontaminated water and food found through various channels or switch from an As-contaminated area to a clean area; but plants are sessile and obtain As along with essential minerals and water through roots that make them more susceptible to arsenic poisoning and consequent stress. Arsenic and phosphorus have many similarities in terms of their physical and chemical characteristics, and they commonly compete to cause physiological anomalies in biological systems that contribute to further stress. Initial indicators of arsenic’s propensity to induce toxicity in plants are a decrease in yield and a loss in plant biomass. This is accompanied by considerable physiological alterations; including instant oxidative surge; followed by essential biomolecule oxidation. These variables ultimately result in cell permeability and an electrolyte imbalance. In addition, arsenic disturbs the nucleic acids, the transcription process, and the essential enzymes engaged with the plant system’s primary metabolic pathways. To lessen As absorption by plants, a variety of mitigation strategies have been proposed which include agronomic practices, plant breeding, genetic manipulation, computer-aided modeling, biochemical techniques, and the altering of human approaches regarding consumption and pollution, and in these ways, increased awareness may be generated. These mitigation strategies will further help in ensuring good health, food security, and environmental sustainability. This article summarises the nature of the impact of arsenic on plants, the physio-biochemical mechanisms evolved to cope with As stress, and the mitigation measures that can be employed to eliminate the negative effects of As.

The Sal (Shorea robusta) dominated forest vegetation of Dalma Wildlife Sanctuary, West Singhbhum, Jharkhand, India was explored to evaluate the diversity and vegetation structure through different phyto-sociological attributes. The knowledge of the structure and composition of the plant communities has enormous significance in conservation of managed forests, therefore, the plant species diversity, structure and importance value index (IVI) at various levels, viz., trees, shrubs and herbs were studied. A total of 153 plant species (66 trees, 30 shrubs and 57 herbs) belonging to 124 genera of 51 families were recorded from the 30 random plots marked for sampling within the sanctuary. The IVI was highest in Shorea robusta (40.87) and lowest in Syzygium salicifolium (1.08). Shannon-Weaver’s diversity index was recorded highest in herbaceous species (3.66) than in trees (3.08) and shrubs (2.66). Simpson’s index was highest in trees (0.106) than in shrubs (0.035) and herbs (0.028). Pielou’s index was found highest in herbs (0.064) than in shrubs (0.048) and trees (0.046) which was within the range reported for different Indian forests and also which indicates that the sanctuary exhibits species diverse forest. The result of plant species diversity and their quantitative features reveal that the overall community is heterogeneous.

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