As a part of Tasar farmers’ Awareness Programme, a three-day Tasar Silk Exhibition-cum-Fair will be organised here at Veer Savarkar Bhawan from February 2 this year.The Exhibition-cum-Fair is organised by Tasar Sub Depot, Central Silk Board, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, Bilaspur. The officials said that Exhibition-cum-Fair will be inaugurated at 11 am by Member of Parliament, Dr Banshilal Mahto.
Chairman of Chhattisgarh State Handicraft Development and Marketing Federation Santosh Dewangan will preside over the inaugural session in presence of Director of Basic Tasar Silkworm Seed Organization, Bilaspur, Dr Rakesh Mishra.A workshop on different aspects of sericulture, storage and marketing of silk will be organised with participation of scientists and technical experts on the subject.
Notably, Chhattisgarh has as many as 151 Tasar silk project centres funded by the Japanese Government operating in the State, officials informed. Tasar silk plantation had been taken up in 2,980 hectares under Japan aided Tussar Silk Project, they stated.Moreover, under the Tasar Silk Development and Expansion Scheme of Chhattisgarh Government's Rural Industry Department, nearly 1.2 lakh beneficiaries have been benefited during the previous financial year 2013-14.
Nearly 26.31 crore units of Kosa were produced in the previous year and total 394 metric tonnes of threads were produced from these Kosa fruits. Around Rs19.21 crore have been spent on this scheme.Department officials informed that the total Kosa produced last year includes 5.83 crore units of Tussar cocoon and 20.48 lakh units of natural Kosa.
Presently, total 139 Tasar centres are operating in the State, which includes 43 pilot project, 84 other Tussar centres and 12 Kosa seed centres.Under this scheme, nearly 11,656 hectare area is available for Tasar plantation, including 3276.50 hectare under departmental centres, 1291.50 hectares under MNREGS,4,801 hectares under natural forest areas.
The State now has one ‘Raw Material Bank’ for Tasar silk established in Raigarh district, according to the 2013-14 annual report of the Union Ministry of Textiles.The primary objective of the ‘Raw Material Bank’ is to ensure economic and fair price for the primary Tassar growers, it stated.In Chhattisgarh, silk farming as become an additional source of income for the farmers of insurgency infested Bastar district, officials informed.
Taking benefit of the silk development schemes of the Village Industries Department of the State Government, the villagers of the district have proved it by their hard work.Abundant production of Tassar Kosa cocoons has been taken up in the natural Saal forests of the district. Besides, Shahtuti silk is cultivated in the villages. The Silk Directorate has been providing jobs to 300 families, working as various self-help groups (SHGs), in the Tassar Seed Production Centre, in Chapka village of the district.Every year, about 12 lakh Tassar (Kosa) silk cocoons bred on Arjun trees in the 68-hectare area of the Tasar Seed Production Centre.
With this, beneficiaries of 60 families get additional income of about Rs24,000. Besides, about 250 other families are linked with this Tassar Seed Production Centre, which take seeds from here and cultivates kosa cocoons on the natural Saal forests.Arjun saplings were planted in the 10-acre land of Silk Directorate in Bade Garvand village, in which the self-help group (SHG) Ma Vamandei Kosa Krimi Palan had been farming Tasar Kosa. The Silk Centre operated in Bade Marenga village of the district is also playing an important role in making villagers self-reliant economically.
In 30-acre land of this centre, which is about 20 years old, about half-a-dozen women self-help groups have been farming silkworm on the Shahtut plants. Every year Mulberry silk cocoons worth Rs7.5 lakh are prepared here. This amount is deposited directly in the account of women self-help groups. The Silk Directorate operates Cocoon Bank and Silk Kosa Threading Centre in Dharampur village of the district. A total of 30 machines were installed at the Centre for Kosa threading, on which 28 beneficiaries are working.
In another Centre, silk thread production works are done through Matka pulling system, in which 22 beneficiaries are working. As such, the Centre has become bread-earner for 50 families. In 2010-11, the officers of Silk Directorate, by organising awareness camps in villages, had imparted training to the villagers in producing ‘Raily Kosa’.Thereafter, by launching a campaign with the assistance of the villagers, 25 lakh butterflies were released in Saal forests. As a result, 7.10 crore ‘Raily Kosa’were produced in 2011-12 and 7.20 crore in the year 2012-13