SERICULTURE Silk production has a long history. Silk was discovered by Xilin (Hsi- ling-chi), wife of China’s 3rd Emperor, Huangdi (Hoang-Ti), in 2640 B.C. While making tea, Xilingji accidentally dropped a silkworm cocoon into a cup of hot water and found that the silk fiber could be loosened and unwound. Fibers from several cocoons could be twisted together to make a thread that was strong enough to be woven into cloth. Thereafter, Hsi-ling chi discovered not only the means of raising silk worms, but also the manners of reeling silk and of employing it to make garments. Later sericulture spread throughout China, and silk became a precious commodity, highly sought after by other countries. Demand for this exotic fabric eventually created the lucrative trade route, the historically famous Silk Road or Silk Route named after its most important commodity. This road helped in taking silk westward and bringing gold, silver and wool to the East. With the mulberry silk moth native to China, the Chinese had a monopoly on the worlds silk production. The origin of Sericulture and Silk production are closely associated with the emergence of China as one of the great civilization. It is believed that Sericulture involved gradually and by the middle of the third millennium BC was already being used by the humanity. For the first time in 2697 BC Lotzu empress of Kwangti discovered the fancy origin of beautiful Silk in the form of thread in China. Thus the technique of cloth preparation from the cultivated Silk was known to Chinese people for the more than 2000 years ago. But in the year 555 A.D this secrecy was opened and the eggs of Silkworm and Sericulture technique were smuggled by two monks sent as spies to China and thus, Sericulture was introduced into Europe. Now-a-days, Sericulture has become one of the important cottage industries in a number of countries like Japan, China, Rep. of Korea, India, Brazil, Russia, Italy and France. The experiment and systematic study on Sericulture was started in Japan in 1911 after establishment of the Sericulture experimental station in 1979, and the national Sericulture experimental station was set up in Tokyo. INDIAN SCENARIO Silk is nature’s gift to mankind and a commercial fiber of animal origin other than wool. Being an eco- friendly, biodegradable and self- sustaining material; silk has assumed special relevance in present age. Promotion of sericulture can help in ecosystem development as well as high economic returns. Sericulture is practiced in India and India is the 5th largest producer of silk in the World. It has been identified as employment oriented industry. All the sections of sericulture industry, viz. mulberry cultivation, silkworm seed production, silkworm rearing, reeling and weaving of silk and collection of byproducts and its processing provide a large scale employment, thereby a source of livelihood for the rural and tribal people. Sericulture industry is rated as the second largest employer in India. Owing to this peculiar nature, the Indian planners have identified sericulture as one of the best-suited occupations for ideal growth and development of rural India. Mulberry sericulture has been traditional occupation in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, A.P. and Kashmir; Tasar one, in M.P., Chota Nagpur Division and Orissa; Muga one, in Assam, Nagaland, Tripura and Eri one in Assam and West Bengal. North-eastern part of India is the only region in the world where all four varieties of silk are produced. Central and State level Government Silk Departments are actively engaged in addressing the objective of promotion of sericulture in traditional as well as non- traditional regions. With the launching of massive developmental schemes, it is expected to gain an accelerated tempo of sericultural activities in the country, paving way for doubling the employment opportunities in phased manner, and thereby, it may set to bring a soothing touch to the burning problem of acute unemployment in rural India and thus can check the rural migration to urban areas to a certain extent. Sericulture is an agro- based cottage industry involving interdependent rural, semi-urban and urban-based activities in which estimated participation of women is about 60%. Thus, in contrast to any other agro-based profession the role of women in sericulture industry is dominating which will be helpful for improving the status of women in family enterprises. In the light of women welfare through Sericulture industry, the Central Silk Board, a statutory organization, under the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India has established a special component of assistance to Women and NGO’s’ into the National Sericulture Project. There are four major research centres for Sericulture in India: 1. Central Sericulture Research and Training Institute, Behrampur (Orissa). 2. Central Sericulture Research and Training Institute, Mysore (Karnataka). 3. Central Tasar Research and Training Institute, Ranchi (Jharkhand). 4. Central Silk Technological Research Institute, Bangalore (Karnataka). Ecdysteroids are hormones of arthropods and many other invertebrates. The first ecdysteroid, ecdysone was isolated from silkworm pupae (Bombyx mori) by German scientists, Butenandt and Karlson, in 1954. Ecdysteroids play essential roles in all insects, as they regulate major transitional events during insect growth: molting, metamorphosis, reproducti
Posted on: Wed, 23 Oct 2013 03:29:23 +0000
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