GIS tech to help identify potential areas for expanding sericulture

The Central Silk Board has identified new areas in northeastern states for expanding sericulture

The Central Silk Board (CSB), under the Ministry of Textiles, has taken up a project to identify potential areas for sericulture expansion, using remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS) technology.

Under this project, using RS and GIS technologies, the CSB has identified land suitable for sericulture in about 108 districts spread over to 26 states. Out of this, 41 districts from 8 North-Eastern states have been included under Phase-1 of the project, the CSB said.

The present project covered a detailed study at a scale of 1:50,000 taking into consideration land use, cultivable wasteland areas coupled with soil, slope and climatic parameters for identifying suitable areas for sericulture development.

The project has developed Sericulture Information Linkages Knowledge System (SILKS) web portal wherein potential areas for sericulture have been identified through RS and GIS application, CSB said in a statement.

The project, in its one year of implementation, has generated potential area maps on Mulberry, Eri, Muga and Tasar sectors, with an objective of providing ICT based single window solution for dissemination of R & D technologies and knowledge in 41 districts of the North Eastern Region of the country in local languages.

Sericulture Information Linkage Knowledge System is a single window, ICT-based information and Advisory Services System for the planners, field staff and farmers practising sericulture. The SILKS web portal provides both spatial and non-spatial information to the users.

The spatial information cover details of natural resources like potential sites suitable for host plant development, soil map, utility map, metrological details. Non spatial information covers technology for silkworm rearing, disease and pest management, mulberry and silkworm suitable to the area, infrastructure available among others.

Besides this, farmer advisory services like weather advisory, disease forewarning, support services etc., are also provided. Using these two technologies, the Silk Board has till now identified 731,858 hectares of area as potential area for sericulture expansion in North Eastern Region.

The project has helped in planning the services in the silk sector, thereby assisting in providing livelihood opportunities in the region. Central Silk Board has carried out extensive capacity building for empowering the end users and also to ensure scalability and sustainability.

Recognising the work of Central Silk Board in the area of GIS and RS, the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DAR&PG), Government of India has presented the National e-Governance “Silver” Award for the year 2014-15. The CSB is selected under the category “Innovative Use of GIS Technology in e-Governance” for its project on “Application of Remote Sensing and GIS Technology in Sericulture Development.”