JKSRLM to help SHGs to start silkworm rearing

Jammu and Kashmir State Rural Livelihood Mission (JKSRLM) will help the self help groups (SHG) to start silk worm rearing as it has high demand in market and can be proved as a viable income generating source, an official spokesman said Wednesday.

Mission director, JKSRLM, Abdul Rashid War has directed officials to identify the SHGs that will work under convergence with sericulture department for rearing of silkworms, the spokesman added.

He said War passed the directive at a meeting convened to review the performance of the Umeed project here.

Addressing the meeting, War said the sericulture department will provide silk worm seeds free of cost.

The department will also provide technical inputs on rearing and marketing to the SHGs to enhance their livelihoods.

"Rearing of silk worms is a promising enterprise as the silk industry is growing and the raw material is in high demand in the market. It can prove a viable trade for the members of SHGs to generate a good income for itself," he said.

In order to increase the bargaining power of SHGs, the director said they ought to register Cluster Level Federations (CLFs) under registrar of societies as multiple trading units as registered CLFs get huge benefits under schemes like Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).

"The mission will provide all the support for registration and facilitate the convergence under various schemes besides providing them a platform for marketing," he said.