Distribution and habitat: Throughout India

Botany:  An erect perennial grass upto 1.5 m high with basal rooting node, internodes smooth, polished. 

• Leaves: Narrowed from a broad cordate base to an acuminate tip, smooth on both surfaces, with slender nerves and spinulosely serrate margins; midrib stout; sheaths long, smooth; ligule a very narrow membrane.
• Inflorescence:  Racemes nodding or drooping from long peduncles; rachis within the bract slender, above the bract stout, notched at the nodes. Male spikelets 10 - 13 mm long, subsequent, imbricating. Lower involucral glume 10 mm long, elliptic lanceolate, acute, concave, many nerved. upper involucral glume similar to the lower but not winged, 5-9 nerved; lower floral glume oblong-lanceolate, hyaline, paleate, triandrous, 3-5 nerved; upper floral glume similar, paleate, triandrous or empty.   Anthers 5 mm long, orange.
• Fruit: Subglobose or ellipsoid, bluish grey, 6-10 mm long, smooth, polished.

Properties: Diuretic, cathartic, depurative

Chemical constituent: Leucine, tyrosine, histidine, lysine, arginine and coicin.

Uses: Strangury, pneumonia, diet drinks for invalids and pectoral diseases                                                                                            

Propagation: Seed