Tasar Silk

India is the second largest producer of silk in the World. Tasar silk contributes around 10% of the total silk production. It involves the raising of food plants for silkworm, rearing of silkworm for production of cocoons, reeling and spinning of cocoon for production of yarn which is used to manufacture fabric.

Pre-Cocoon Segment : Rearing of Tasar silkworm in the natural forest and harvest of cocoons :

Tasar seed production, silkworm rearing and harvest of cocoons belong to this segment. Rearers, majorities of whom are tribal people, live in the forest or in the fringe areas. Low level of economy, the suitability of Tasar for utilizing family labor, favorable weather conditions and low investment and low economic gestation of the business sustains nearly 100,000 families

However, at the level of producers, Tasar silkworm rearing is fraught with risks.

TDF here brings the scientific vigor and technology in collaboration with Central Silk Board to withstand these climatic vagaries, access of quality eggs, training & capacity building of the rearer’s and seed producers. TDF also helps in organizing traditional rearer’s, to protect and maintain their host tree stock TDF pioneered in establishing private seed production units called Grainages in Tasar sector. These Grainages function as home based service enterprise to produce high quality eggs- Disease Free Layings (DFLs) and cater to the rearer’s in the local area. This intervention has significantly contributed to stabilize Tasar cocoon production in the sector. TDF also promotes the concept of scientific rearing among silkworm rearer’s and participation of women in Tasar silkworm rearing. TDF has also created a pool of over 350 Community Resource Persons, and a team of Professionals and Subject Matter Specialists, trained to work with the producer communities, The Collaboration between TDF and the Central Silk Board (previously through PRADAN), the apex sericulture organization in India for over a decade, is perhaps the longest GO-NGO partnership to promote grassroots action in Sericulture sector.

Post-cocoon segment : Production of Tasar silk yarn from cocoons and fabric weaving

Tasar yarn spinners, reeler’s and fabric weavers belong to this segment. Majority of the Tasar weavers belongs to Muslim or lower caste Hindu communities.

TDF has introduced Yarn production activity among women with no-prior history of the activity. TDF further collaborates with other agencies like Eco Tasar Pvt. Ltd for manufacturing of fabric and further marketing.

Marketing Linkages

Cocoon Bank : We have established dedicated cocoon bank which is playing crucial role in fare price realization for the cocoons produced by the rearer’s in its operational area.

Auctioning of the cocoons : We help in organizing auction of the cocoons produced in the production cluster the secondary community institutions, co-operatives and community Trusts in organizing the auction for the cocoons produced in the area by inviting the traders and the yarn producers from different areas of the country helps them in availing the maximum price for their produce.

community mobilization

We promote small collectives around the tasar sericulture activity at village level called Tasar Vikas Samity (TVS).

We also promote the second tier community institutions for fostering sustainability and self sufficiency at each production cluster comprising of 600-1000 sericulture practitioners/ Rearer’s. These institutions registered under co-operative society/community Trust are nurtured by us for efficient management and effective governance. These institutions nurture and provide ground for the private entrepreneurs like grainage entrepreneurs and the Community Resource persons to further the cause of sector by way of leveraging finance and monitoring and review of business practices.

Afforestation

We have raised more than 5,000 hectare’s plantation of Terminalia Arjuna (Arjun), a primary host plant of Tasar silk worm on barren, eroded privately own land in Jharkhand, Bihar, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal states under different programs supported by both Govt. and Non-Governmental Institutions. This is often the largest privately held forest cover in the region.

The host tree plantations acting as the seed rearing zones for production of seed cocoons which are used for Tasar seed production for further multiplication.

Reserch And Development

TDF is bringing new technologies which can accelerate the production of cocoon as well as can ease out the process of making seed, yarn etc. TDF engages with many premiere institutions and establishments to bring out these changes at the grass root level. Few of the initiatives are mentioned as below.

Development of New yarn production machine (Atal): TDF with support from CSB has worked with Aryan Industries Ltd to design a new machine this has been approved by CTR&TI and in the inaugural workshop named by the Present Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Shri Raghubar Das in the name of Ex Prime Minister of India, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee as “ATAL”.

Development of New Microscope (Micro-microscope): A new microscope was developed/ modified in collaboration with H M R C (WWW.hmrc.in), The micro-microscope also has its own inbuilt LED lighting system and therefore can be used in darkness

Development of Computerized Microscope with C-DAC Kolkata: Pebrine-O-Scope: A collaborative research has been done with C-DAC for the full proof pebrine identification technology. C-DAC had development an instrument called “Pebrine-O-Scope” during the period of 3 years research. “Pebrine-o-Scope” is a microscope-mounted instrument with software backend, which analyses the photo-micrographic image of the smear of tissue sample from female silk moth and detects the presence of "Pebrine Spore" disease with high degree of accuracy.

The presentation of this technology in International Sericulture Commission generated lot of popularity and demand of this technology. The technology had been formally transferred to TDF on 27th July 2016 at function organized by C-DAC Kolkata in a function in presence of Secretary Department of Information Technology, Govt. of India. C-DAC had given the right of manufacture and sale of Pebrine-o-scope in the sector to TDF.