Following the successful introduction of Eri culture in Gujarat's castor-growing areas and taking into account farmers' responses, the Eri Sericulture Promotional Project was launched on August 10, 2024, at Sardarkrushinagar, Palanpur, to encourage castor-growing farmers in Gujarat's Banaskantha, Mehsana, Patan, and Sabarkantha districts. Giriraj Singh, Union Minister of Textiles, inaugurated the event, which was attended by Pabitra Margherita, Minister of State for Textiles, and Rachna Shah, Secretary, Ministry of Textiles.
Integrating Eri Silk Production with Castor Cultivation
The project aims to assist farmers in adopting sericulture as an additional source of income, thereby expanding Eri culture in a castor-rich area. More than 1,200 people attended the event, including 860 registered farmers, SDAU staff and students, media representatives, and Central Silk Board officials.
The Eri promotional project launched in Gujarat has achieved significant progress so far. An awareness campaign in the main castor-producing districts of Banaskantha, Mehsana, Patan, and Sabarkantha reached 112 villages and created interest among 2,136 farmers. A village-level training program registered 817 farmers, and four late-age rearing houses and an Eri Chawki Rearing Centre (CRC) are being built to aid rearing operations. In addition, four Sericulture Resource Centers (SRCs) were established to provide farmers with practical training.
The main objective is to evaluate, optimize, and popularize Eri culture technologies and practices developed by CSB's Research Institute, the Central Muga Eri Research & Training Institute (CMER&TI), in collaboration with the Kalyan Foundation.
The project will target 100 farmers and aim to integrate Eri silk production with castor cultivation, increasing farmers' incomes. Based on the response to the current project, the next phase/project will introduce Eri culture to an additional 500 farmers in Gujarat, expanding the initiative and establishing Gujarat as a significant Eri silk producer.
Gujarat, with its broad castor cultivation (6.52 lakh hectares), has the ability to become a key Eri silk production hub. By promoting Eri sericulture, the project not only provides an additional income source for castor farmers but also contributes to the long-term growth of the state's silk industry.
The collaboration between the Central Silk Board, the Gujarat government, and local farmers is expected to generate significant economic and social benefits, with the potential to transform Gujarat into a silk production hub. The success of this initiative may also serve as an inspiration to other states, allowing Eri sericulture to spread throughout India and into non-traditional areas.
Through this project, CSB envisions to make Gujarat a major contributor to India's Eri silk production, boosting the state's economy and benefiting the country's silk industry as a whole.
