Tamil Nadu has been making rapid strides in mulberry cultivation, raw silk production and productivity per 100 DFLs (disease-free layers) during the last five years. Mulberry cultivation grew from 12,863 acre in 2004-05 to 45,000 acre in 2008-09. Raw silk production increased to 1,500 tonne from 443 tonne in 2004-05. The number of farmers engaged in sericulture also increased correspondingly from 15,000 to 35,000. ?Total number of persons employed is over 1.75 lakh,? Harmander Singh, state commissioner of sericulture, told FE from Salem. Farmers? income also increased to Rs 54,000 per acre of mulberry from Rs 12,800 in 2002-03, he added.
Tamil Nadu, the fourth largest producer of raw silk in the country, occupies the No.1 position in productivity with 64 kg compared to the national average of 48 kg. It is also the leading state in the production of the bivoltine silk (white silk) for which there is very high demand in overseas markets. While the other silk producing states like Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Assam and Jammu and Kashmir have only 5% of bivoltine silk in their total production portfolio, in Tamil Nadu it is 25%.
Of its 42 clusters for silk production, three are exclusive bivoltine clusters. Bivoltine silk production also made rapid growth from 22.37 tonne in 2003-04 to the current 375 tonne.
?Use of the cluster approach, drip irrigation, adoption of latest technologies in mulberry cultivation and cocoon rearing, liberal central and state government subsidies and technical support were among the factors that aided this quantum jump in acreage, production and productivity,? Harmander Singh said.
The state has established proper forward and backward linkages from soil to silk through various institutions.
