Dillenia indica L.

 
  • Family : DILLENIACEAE
    (Dillenia Family)
  • Family (Hindi name) : KARMAL FAMILY (करमल फैमिली)
  • Family (as per The APG System IV) : Dilleniaceae
  • Species Name (as per The IPNI) : Dillenia indica L.
  • Common name : Elephant Apple, Chulta, Dellenia, Hondapara Tree, Ma-tad (Mal.)
  • Vernacular name :
    • Chalta (Hindi)
    • Betta kanigala, Kalthega (Kannada)
    • Pedda kalinga, Uva, Chinna kali (Telugu)
    • Awoo, Oao, Dau, Uvu, Rai (Oria)
    • Bhavaya (Sanskrit)
    • Mota-Karmal (Marathi)
    • Syalita, Chalita, Valapunna (Malayalam)
  • Habit : Tree
  • Habitat : Tropical moist deciduous forests
  • Comments / notes : Occasional. Fruits are used as laxative. Leaves and bark are astringent.
  • Flower, Fruit : May-February
  • Distribution :
    • Andhra Pradesh : Anantagiri Hills (Visakhapatnam district), Rampa Hills (East Godavari district), West Godavari district, Tirumala Hills (Chittoor district), Srikakulam district
    • Karnataka : Belagavi district, Bengaluru Urban district, Bengaluru Rural district, Dakshina Kannada district, Kodagu (Coorg) district, Shivamogga district, Udupi district
    • Kerala : Kannur district, Wayanad district, Kozhikode district
    • Maharashtra : Amravati district, Pune district, Raigad district, Ratnagiri district, Sindhudurg district, Thane district
    • Odisha : Mayurbhanj district, Khordha district
    • Tamil Nadu : Kancheepuram (Changalpattu-CGP) district, The Nilgiri district
    • Sikkim : Sikkim
    • West Bengal : West Bengal
    • Arunachal Pradesh : Arunachal Pradesh
    • Meghalaya : Meghalaya
    • Assam : Assam
    • Nagaland : Nagaland
    • Delhi : Delhi
    • Bihar : West Champaran district
    • Uttar Pradesh : Uttar Pradesh
    • Mizoram : Mizoram
    • Andaman and Nicobar Islands : South Andaman
    • Manipur : Manipur
    • Tripura : Tripura
  • Native : Bangladesh, Bhutan, Borneo, Cambodia, China, India, Jawa, Laos, Malaya, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Sumatera, Thailand, Vietnam
  • Exotic/Native : Native
  • World Distribution : Bangladesh, Bhutan, Borneo, Cambodia, China, India, Jawa, Laos, Malaya, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Sumatera, Thailand, Vietnam
  • Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
  • Literature :
    • Pullaiah et al., 2002 - Flora of Eastern Ghats Vol. 1
    • H.O. Saxena & M. Brahmam, 1994- Flora of Orissa Vol. 1
    • R. S. Rao and S. H. Sreeramulu, 1986 - Flora of Srikakulam District
    • H. O. Saxena and M. Brahmam, 1989 - The Flora of Similipahar (Similipal), Orissa
    • Franklin Benjamin & G.V.S.Murthy, 2013. Flora of Sri Venkateswara National Park, Andhra Pradesh, BSI
    • Henry, Kumari & Chithra (1983). Flora of Tamil Nadu, India vol. 1
    • Sasidharan, N. 2011. Flowering plants of Kerala. DVD, V 2, KFRI.
    • Deb, D.B. (1981) The Flora of Tripura State. Vol. 2. Today and Tomorrow’s Printers and Publishers, New Delhi.
    • K.Ravikumar, A.C.Tangavelou, & Navendu Page. (2021). Seed plants of Karnataka, India: A concise dictionary. FRLHT-TDU, National Biodiversity Authority (NBA), Chennai.
    • P. S. N. Rao, P. M. Padhey, B. K. Sinha, H. S. Debnath, P. Lakshminarasimhan, & L. N. Ray. (1999). Flora of Andaman-Nicobar Islands (Vol. 1). Director, Botanical Survey of India.
  • Read more :
  • Permalink : https://indiatrees-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Dillenia indica
  • Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Deepak Kumar (2026). India Trees and Vegetation Types. Dillenia indica. Downloaded on 3 October 2026.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Line Drawings

Field Image(s)

Habitat

Distribution District wise

India Distribution

World Distribution

GBIF Distribution

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