Weavers say yes, farmers no to amendment of Silk Board Act

Bangalore, Jan 6 (UNI) Close on the heels of the strong opposition to the new amendments in the Central Silk Board (CSB) Act, by farmers and reelers in Karnataka, weavers, a section of reelers and exporters have sought CSB to immediately implement the changes in the Act to benefit the industry, otherwise doomed the State.

Addressing a press conference here today, Karnataka Weavers Federation President T V Maruti said it was high time the amendment was implemented to put an end to the hardships faced by the weavers due to various restrictions imposed by the State Government.

He said the existing rules governing silk exchanges and the acts of enforcement department of the Department of Sericulture had impeded the growth of the silk industry in the state, which remained a cottage industry, while China, Brazil and Uzbekistan had succeeded in turning the silk industry highly profitable.

Meanwhile, more than 40 members of various silk reelers, weavers, and export associations, led by Mr Maruti, also the Indian Silk Export Promotion Council Chairman, met CSB Chairman H Hanumanthappa yesterday, seeking immediate intervention by the board to restore the lost glory of silk to Karnataka, a primary silk producer in the country.

However fearing doomsday, silk farmers from the state feel that the new sets of rules would badly affect the small farmers who form 70 per cent of the silk producers in the country.

According to official sources, they wanted that the state control of silk, hampering development of the industry in the state, should be minimised so that the industry could thrive. The setting up of regulated markets for cocoon and silk had not yielded the desired result, they claimed.

With both the farming community and the weaving and export community projecting contrasting views on the amendment, the state was now in the thick of a silk war among stake holders.

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