Fed by a growing worldwide demand for eco-friendly, bio-degradable plates and bowls tribals across Orissa are descending on the forests to collect leaves of the sal tree. The broad leaves being pliable do not tear when being fashioned into such items. The khalis, as the finished products are locally called, are a source of unexpected income for tribals, most of who own no cultivable land and have few other means of livelihood. Though they get only Rs 5 for every bundle of 80 plates or bowls, every rupee is quite important in their impoverished lives. With the sal accounting for nearly 70 per cent of Orissa's forests, the trade in its leaves could spell an environmental disaster.