The gap between India and China in raw silk production is narrowing, said Director of Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute (CSRTI), Mysuru, Dr. Gandhi Doss.
Speaking on the occasion of Silk Day and the Platinum Jubilee celebration of the passing of the Central Silk Board (CSB) Act at CSRTI in Mysuru on Wednesday, September 20, Dr. Doss said that India’s annual raw silk production had reached 35,000 metric tones against the world’s leading silk producer China’s annual production of 55,000 metric tones.
India, which is the world’s second largest silk producing country, is “closing in” on China, he said.
The institutions and scientists working in several institutions that come under a “banyan tree” like CSB had contributed to India’s progress in the field of sericulture, he said, recalling that it was 75 years ago on September 20 in 1948 that the Central Silk Board Act was passed in the Parliament.
Apart from sericulture farmers, the silk industry provided a source of livelihood to a large number of artisans involved in post-cocoon activities including silk removal, spinning, reeling, dying and weaving. The Research and Development (R and D) activities at CSRTI, a premier sericulture research institute in the country, had not only helped the sericulture farmers, but also the artisans involved in the value chain of silk industry.
“Thirty years ago, one kg of cocoon was sold for ₹50. Now, sericulture farmers get anywhere between ₹500 to ₹750 per kg. The 10 to 15 fold increase in the price of cocoons was due to the concerted efforts of the scientists and staff of CSRTI,” he claimed.
He pointed out that mulberry was yielding no more than 20,000 kg per hectare per year. But, due to the efforts of the CSRTI, the yield has now reached 70,000 kg per hectare per year, boosting silkworm rearing. Besides, the silkworm varieties developed by the Institute has helped produce 70 to 90 kg of cocoon for every 100 disease free layings (dfl).
The high-yielding mulberry varieties and silkworm hybrids had helped sericulture farmers get higher returns and improved the country’s economy, Dr. Doss said.
Multipurpose plant
Apart from providing feed for silkworm, mulberry is turning out to be a multipurpose plant used in the production of mulberry tea and mulberry bark-based paper, besides contributing to reduction of carbon di oxide in the atmosphere and helping the environment.
Similiarly, he said silk reared from the cocoons was used not just for producing garments, but also had applications in other areas like cosmetics and medicine. The silk thread is used as a suture to heal wounds and produce eco-friendly gel, he said.
Meanwhile, Dr. G. Geethadevi, a retired scientist from CSRTI, who was the chief guest on the occasion, narrated the progress of the sericulture industry in southern India with the intervention of the R and D work on CSRTI.
A progressive reeler Venkatesh, who shared his 45 years of experience in reeling silk, told the gathering that cocoon quality had improved over the decades thanks to the introduction of new technologies.
“Earlier, 13 kg of cocoons were required to produce on kg of raw silk. Now, only 6 kg of cocoons are needed to produce one kg of raw silk. This is possible because of the improved silkworm breed, mulberry variety and rearing technologies. Individual cocoon filament length has improved from 300-400 metres to 1,000-1,200 metres. This has reduced the cost of silk fabric production,” he said.
Resham Diwas Pledge
On the occasion of the Silk Day, the Resham Diwas pledge was taken by the scientists and staff of CSRTI to “support the promotion and growth of sericulture and silk industry in India”.
