As part of the government’s efforts to boost silk production, the Karnataka State Sericulture Research and Development Institute is organising a three-day national conference on advances in sericulture technologies and the role of women here from Thursday.
The conference is being held at Talaghattapura on Kanakpura Road. G S Shivaswamy, Commissioner Sericulture Development, said six new innovations focusing on improving the quantity and quality of silk production would be unveiled at the conference. Nearly 400 scientists would participate in the conference where about 350 research papers will be presented across 16 technical sessions.
“There will also be a interactive session between farmers and scientists,” said institute director C S Patil.
The state currently produces around 8,000 tonnes of silk as against a national demand of 28,000 tonnes every year, according to Horticulture secretary Shankarlinge Gowda. “If we can involve rural women in sericulture, it will help boost their income and the state’s production as well,” he said. The state currently imports nearly 10,000 tonnes of silk annually from countries like China, Gowda said, underlining the need to increase local production. While the state currently has about 65,000 hectares of land available for sericulture, this is unlikely to increase, if not shrink in the coming years.