Pb to launch silk products under own brand: Min

Chandigarh: The Punjab govt has announced plans to launch state-produced silk products under its own label as part of an effort to boost farmers’ income through agricultural allied-occupations.
At a state-level Silk Day event, state horticulture minister Chetan Singh Jouramajra unveiled his department’s logo for silk products and committed to doubling silk production in the state by the end of 2025.He said: “Sericulture is practiced in about 230 villages across the sub-mountainous districts of Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Pathankot, and Ropar, with 1,200 to 1,400 silk rearers involved in the occupation.”
The state produces two types of silk mainly: bivoltine mulberry and eri silk. Annually, 1,000 to 1,100 ounces of mulberry silk seeds yield 30,000 to 35,000 kilograms of mulberry silk cocoons, while 200 ounces of eri silk seeds produce 5,000 to 8,000 kilograms of eri silk cocoons. The minister noted that sericulture is practiced primarily by individuals living below the poverty line, landless people, or those with small landholdings. He also honored silk farmers from the Kandi region for their contributions to this production. tnn