Silk
Sericulture constitutes an agriculture-centred sector encompassing the cultivation of silkworms to yield raw silk, the thread derived from cocoons woven by specific insect species.
India predominantly engages in the production of four silk variants: Mulberry, Tussar, Muga, and Eri. Notably, Mulberry silk dominates the silk output, accounting for approximately 71%. Key silk-producing states include Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, and Tamil Nadu.
The North East region stands out as the exclusive territory producing four distinct types of silk, including Mulberry, Oak Tasar, Muga, and Eri.
Silk specialisation is geographically distributed:
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Matka Silk from West Bengal
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Mulberry Silk from Karnataka
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Wild Silks like Tussar, Ghicha, and Ketya from Jharkhand
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Muga Silk from Assam
Cocoon types clockwise from top left: white eri, red eri, tussar & balkal, muga & mulberry
The impact of silk production on people
Due to its labour-intensive nature, silk production necessitates a substantial workforce. In India, the silk industry engages approximately 7.9 million employees, primarily in rural areas. Regrettably, this situation creates a vulnerability to worker exploitation, leading to inadequate wages that fail to meet basic necessities. Tragically, this exploitation also extends to children.
Human Rights Watch has documented instances of child slavery within the Indian silk industry, with an estimated 350,000 working children involved. Some of these children, as young as five years old, are engaged in activities such as boiling cocoons, transporting containers of mulberry leaves, and embellishing saris. These child labourers endure gruelling work shifts of twelve hours or more per day, toiling six and a half or seven days per week, all while enduring physical and verbal mistreatment. Compensation for their efforts ranges from meagre to about Rs. 400 (approximately 7.71€) per month.
As a result, this platform exclusively offers information about Ahimsa Silk, also recognized as peace silk, and Balkal Silk, originating from the inner stem of the tussar silk cocoon. As we are against child labour within the silk industry and the harm caused to silkworms.
Ahimsa Silk
Ahimsa Silk, also referred to as peace silk, cruelty-free silk, and non-violent silk, encompasses any form of silk production that avoids causing harm or killing the silk worms. However, it is incorrectly labelled as vegan silk; it is not vegan as it involves an animal product.
In contrast, conventional silk production involves processes such as steaming, boiling, or sun-drying cocoons, resulting in the death of the silk larvae within. According to PETA, creating one pound of silk entails the killing of 3,000 silkworms, while a single silk sari requires the demise of 10,000 silk worms.
Ahimsa Silk, also known as peace silk, cruelty-free silk, and non-violent silk, is meticulously crafted on a small scale within India's cottage industry. Its production provides essential support to a broad community of rural silk farmers, predominantly women, as well as women and men involved in spinning and weaving. Producing peace silk necessitates an additional ten-day period in the production cycle to allow for the maturation of larvae and the emergence of moths from the cocoons. In contrast, the conventional method takes approximately 15 minutes. During this extended phase, the cocoon yields only one-sixth of the filament, leading to an augmented expense for nonviolent silk. It is valued at approximately 6,000 rupees (US$92) per kilogram, roughly twice the cost of its conventional counterpart.
The term "ahimsa" has its origins in Sanskrit and translates to "noninjury." This principle holds significant ethical weight in three major religions originating from the Indian Subcontinent: Jainism, Hinduism, and Buddhism. It underscores the imperative to refrain from causing harm to any living beings.
Is Ahimsa Silk sustainable ?
Ahimsa silk is often presented as a morally superior and ethical option due to its avoidance of stifling during the production process. This permits the moths to emerge from their cocoons and engage in breeding. However, what frequently goes unnoticed and unquestioned is the fate that awaits these adult moths.
While farmers enable moths to mate, male moths are repeatedly utilised until their fertility diminishes, at which point they are discarded, subjected to a slow demise. Female moths face a grim fate, being crushed and subsequently examined for potential diseases. If any ailments are detected, all their eggs are annihilated.
Intriguing as the concept of peace silk may be, it is no surprise that conscientious consumers gravitate towards it as a viable alternative to traditional silk. Nevertheless, we must acknowledge that the peace silk industry's reality does not align with ethical or peaceful practices. Despite the apparent liberation of silkworms from their cocoons, they still meet a distressingly painful fate thereafter. Hence, genuinely ethical attire entails garments that are entirely devoid of animal exploitation.
Derived from the stem of the tussar silk cocoon that serves as both cocoon holder and tree weaver, balkal silk is an exceptionally scarce type of silk crafted solely on a limited scale within India. Notably, all balkal silk adheres to the ahimsa principle, as it is sourced from the stem rather than the cocoon, ensuring the preservation of silkworm lives.
Balkal Silk
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Balkal silk is made from the stem of the tussar cocoon