An Overview of Muga and Eri Silk industry in the North Eastern

Region of India: An Empirical study

*Dr. Jatindra Nath Saikia

Introduction:

Muga is widely reared in the Brahmaputra Valley of Assam particularly in Tinsukia, Dibrugarh,

Sivasagar, Jorhat, Golaghat, Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Kokrajhar, Udalguri, Goalpara and Kamrup district of

Assam. The precious glittering golden yellow silk-Muga is exclusive and endemic to the North Eastern

Region of India since nowhere in the world Muga silk can be produced. Though the Salubrious climate of

Assam is suitable for all the varieties of silk i.e. Muga, Mulberry, Eri and Oak Tasar, Muga is the most

famous and the best of all. Assam is the biggest producer of Muga silk since 95% of this silk is produced

in Assam only. The rest is produced in Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizuram of the North eastern

Region of India. The Muga silk is golden yellow in colour and is produced by the caterpillar “Antheraca

assama”, which feeds on several host plants like Som (Machilus bombycina) and Sola (Litsala

Polyantha). The moth is basically a wild one. It is multi-volatile in character and generally reared

outdoors. It is the most precious, durable, strong, lustrous, elegant and best dress materials for every

woman in Assamese society on every festive occasion including marriage ceremony, either in the form of

a “Sari” or in the form of the traditional “Mekhela Chadar”

Eri Culture is mostly confined to the Brahmaputra Valley of Assam in the tribal inhabitant districts

followed by Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh. Eri culture is also found in

small scall in other states such as Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Orssa etc. The

word Eri means castor plant and is derived from the word Eranda of Sanskrit origin. The Britishers

(Sankar S, 2009) called it as “Palma Christi” silk. In 1771, Captain Jenkins (Sankar S, 2009) remarked

that Eri silk was of incredible durability. Eri culture is the most predominate in Assam which is gaining

popularity day by day. The creamy white silk produced by the caterpillar is warm, strong, durable and

resistant to sunlight, acid and alkalis. Its fabrics become bright and glossary after every wash. Rearing of
Eri is done indoor having five to six life cycles in a year. The worm is poly phagoses and it depends on

several varieties of food plants. Payam, Tapioca, Barkessere, barpat, Gulancha, Gamari etc. are the food

plants of Eri. However, castor and Keseru are regarded as the best food plants for Eri, because castor and

keseru have been recommended to the garden for raising systematic Eri food plant at farmer’s level.

Moreover, these can very easily be grown and no special treatment is required for these plants.

Silk industry has directly and indirectly been providing gainful employment opportunities to the

people of rural and semi-urban areas of the North Eastern Region of India. In Assam, the natural silk

sector provides employment opportunities to nearly 1.85 families at present (Sankar S, 2009). The

involvement of women folk is about 65% and the involvement of the weaker section of the society is

54.4% (Sankar S, 2009). So this sector is women friendly and contributes a lot in empowering women as

well as the weaker section of the society.

Following table shows the state wise breakup on Area and Families involved in Natural silk
sector in the NER of India:
Table-1

State Area in hectares Families

Mulberry Muga Eri Oak Total
Nos
Assam 4539 7263 7938 27 19767 185000

Arunachal 590 550 500 110 1750 3340

Pradesh
Manipur 5914 1273 13543 7150 27880 2500

Meghalaya 917 545 1285 NIL 2747 2096

Mizoram 4820 204 148 NIL 5172 3500

Nagaland 369 227 3240 274 4110 7370

Tripura 1407 NIL NIL NIL 1407 105000

Total 18556 10062 26654 7561 62833 308806

 Source: Status Report 2006-07 of concerned states: Available in the Office of the Director of
Sericulture, Govt. of Assam, Khanapara, Guwahati.

Objective of the paper:

The main objective of this paper is to highlight the present status and challenges of Muga and Eri

silk sector of the North Eastern region of India.

Scope of the paper:

Though the climatic condition of the region is almost favourable for producing all the four

varieties of silk, my study will be confined in the Muga and Eri silk sector only. The paper has not

covered different problems encountered by the Muga and Eri culture at different stages such as seed

production, rearing, cocoon production and marketing, reeling and spinning of cocoons, yarn production

and marketing, manufacturing of dresses as per the demand of the consumers and their marketing etc. The

paper discusses different aspects of Muga and Eri culture and the problems that are being encountered in

rearing Muga and Eri silk.

Methodology:

In order to prepare the paper both Primary as well as the Secondary data is used. Primary data

have been collected by using an Interview Schedule. Some selected Seed Producers, Rearers, Reelers,

Spinners, Weavers, Traders and the Fashion Designers have been interviewed by using the schedules.

Different Government Officials have also been interviewed and questionnaires have been canvassed to

them in order to collect necessary data. Secondary data includes different published Reports of the Central

Silk Board, Government of India, Directorate of Sericulture; Government of Assam etc have been used.

The paper is the fruit of a Major Research Project on “Marketing of Natural silk Products

produced in Assam (A study of the biggest Muga and Eri Silk Weaving Cluster in the world-

Sualkuchi)”sponsored by the Indian Council of Social Science Research, New Delhi and the

information collected by our research team, found relevant for the paper, have been used.

Trade Secret in the Muga Culture:

The Muga industry of Assam has been based upon the proper seed selection method. There is trade secret

in case of Muga culture. The Muga silk worm rearer does not like to disclose the secret points of seed

selection in Larvel, cocoon, moth and egg stages and other points such as preparation, preservation of

seeds and method of rearing even, to his neighbours. The experienced Muga silk worm rearers believe in

various superstitions regarding rearing and seed preparation. They also observe different restrictions on

taking meals in certain period of rearing, do not go for hair cut and even remain abstain from using oil on

hair. They never touch Muga worm without washing their hands. The Muga silk worm rearers strictly

observe the time schedule for producing pre-seed crop, seed crop and cocoons for reeling in order to

obtain high price of their products. The rearers are not interested in buying cocoons from either

government seed farm or private rearers, because of their perception that they can not harvest their next

crop and seed crop as per their plans. So commercial Muga silk worm rearers search the genuine seed

cocoons. Muga seeds are kept in ‘Jali’ (dry leaves for cocooning) and generally transported at night by

the rearers on foot with a view to avoid sun light and rain.

Government Muga farms in Assam

There are three Muga silk worm seed farms under government control and are situated in wild Muga

growing areas. These farms are engaged in the works of purification, multiplication and interchanging the

Muga race after one generation for revitalizing the seeds and eliminating the Pebrine (Phutuka) disease.

Facilities are available to rear the pre seed crop at Kahibama, Bhakapara and Boko of Kamrup district of

Assam. Selected rearers of these localities supply seed cocoons to Borahibari Basic Muga seed farm and

the selected rearers of Golaghat, Sivasagar and Dibrugarh and especially to the Nagaland border to rear

seed crop.

From the following table the life cycle of Muga Worm can be understood:

Table-2
 Muga Worm’s life cycle

Serial Duration of different stages of life Maximum Days Minimum Days

Nos. cycle required required

1 Hatching 14 7
2 As Worms 45 24
3 Spinning Cocoons 7 3
4 Pupa 20 14
5 Moth 14 6

Source: Gogoi Jiban, “Muga Poluer Bansha Sangrakhyan” 2006-07, Titabar, Assam, P. 78

Production Trend of Muga Raw Silk in the North Eastern Region of India

Muga silk production has been facing certain inherent problems since long. During the period of our study

it has been observed that the Muga rearers are facing the paucity of seed during the commercial

production season. Assam alone requires more than one crore disease free layings (DFLs) of Muga per

annum. Out of the total requirement only 5-6% DFLs are produced under the supervision of experts while

the rest is produced by the farmers themselves based on their traditional knowledge. Therefore, the seeds

produced by the farmers are either not DFLs or not adequate to meet the requirement of commercial

seeds. Consequently, the Muga rearers often can not utilize their plantation to the fullest extent for rearing

purpose.

Table-3

Production Statistics of Muga during the 9th, 10th and 11th Plan in Assam

Plan Period Muga Seed Lys Reeling Cocoons Yarn

9th Plan (Lac Nos) (MT)
1997-98 60 3,000 60
1998-99 70 3,500 70
1999-2000 82 4,100 82
2000-01 94 4,700 94
2001-02 92 4,600 92
Total in the 9th 398 19900 398
Plan
10th Plan
2002-03 94.00 4,500 94.00
2003-04 99.00 4,950 99.00
2004-05 98.00 4,900 98.00
2005-06 98.50 4,925 98.50
2006-07 96.45 4,822 96.45
Total in the 10th 485.95 24,097.00 485.95
Plan
11th Plan
2007-08 89.15 4,301 86.05
2008-09 101.00 5,050 101.00
2009-10 88.71 4435.50 88.71
Source: Directorate of Sericulture, Government of Assam, Khanapara, Guwahati.
From the above table it has been revealed that in the 9th Plan period there is gradual increase in the
production of Muga yarn except in 2001-02. In this year the production of Muga yarn has slightly
decreased compared to the previous year. In the 10th Plan period also there is not any significant change in
the production of Muga yarn. In the current plan period, the production of Muga yarn has increased
significantly in 2008-09. But due to the unfortunate changes of climatic condition of Assam, the
production of Muga yarn has come down in 2009-10. But, from our observation it can be mentioned that
during 2010-11 the production of Muga yarn will be increased significantly.
As has already been mentioned, though Assam is the biggest producer of Muga silk, other states of the
North Eastern Region of India also produce some amount of this silk. Following table shows the present
status of Muga culture in the North Eastern States of India:
Table-4
Present status of Muga culture in the North Eastern States of India
Sl. No Particulars Status
1. Area under Muga Food Plantation in Hectors 9241
2. Effective Plantation under use in hectors 6000-6500
3. Rearing Capacity/Hector/Annum( DFL) 1500-2000
4. DFL Cocoon in average 1:50
5. Cocoon production/Hector/Annum in number 75,000-1,00,000
6. Cocoon requirement/Kg yarn (No) 45,000-50,000
7. Raw Silk production Kg/Hector/Annum 15-20
8. Silk recovery in percentage 40-45
9. Rearing capacity per family/per Annum(DFLs) 400-500

Source: Central Muga and Eri Research & Training Institute, Lahdaigarh, Jorhat, Assam.
Eri Silk
Eri silk culture is also an agro-based small scale industry of the North Eastern Region of India consisting
of multifarious activities such as food plant cultivation, silk worm rearing, spinning of yarn weaving. It is
observed that Eri culture is a traditional and a leisure time occupation of the people of this region. Eri
culture still remains as backward venture of rural poor and often lags behind in technology adoption
mainly because of their poor living condition.
Unlike Muga, Eri silk worm is reared indoors. The life cycle of the Eri silk worm has five stages- eggs,
larva, cocoon, pupa and moth. A complete life cycle lasts for about 36 to 39 days in summer and 81 to 85
days in winter. Optimum temperature and humidity required for rearing are 23 0c to 250c and 80-85%
humidity respectively.
Production of Eri raw silk has been increasing over the last decade in this region. The average rearing
capacity per family ranges from 30 to 50 DFLs. The present status of Eri culture in the North Eastern
Region in terms of plantation, carrying capacity, green cocoon production etc. is presented in the
following table:

Table-5
Present status of Eri culture in the North Eastern States of India
Sl No Particulars Status
1. Area under which Eri food plantation (Hector) 7793
2. Leaf yield per hector/per annum (MT) 10-12
3. Rearing capacity per annum/per hector(DFLs) 1,000
4. Green Cocoon production per annum/per
 hector(KG) 875
5. Castor seed production per year/per hector(KG) 600-700
6. Eri green Pupa production per year/per
hector(kg) 750
7. Production of Hand Spun Eri Yarn per year/per
hector(kg) 80
8. Rearing capacity per family/per year(DFLs) 30-50

Source: Directorate of Sericulture, Govt. of Assam, Khanapara, Guwahati.

Problems of Eri and Muga culture in the North Eastern region of India
Muga and Eri culture of the region can be regarded as traditional and in this culture no sophisticated
technology is used by the producers. Due to the unhygienic condition of the rearing houses, a large
number of silk worm perish in every brood. Distribution of so called examined eggs is also not done
timely. Actually, the seeds are not properly examined to eliminate the pebrine disease in case of Muga
culture. In most instances hatching is not regular and therefore, the resultant growth of worms is not
uniform. Incidence of mortality goes on increasing and in the successive stages the survived ones are not
able to form cocoon.
The problems that are being faced by Muga and Eri are different with each other because of the
differences of their production culture. Let us examine the problems of Muga culture first:
Since Muga is reared outdoor, it suffers from a large numbers of problems such as unfavourable weather,
infection from various other creatures and outbreak of various diseases etc. In different seasons Muga
rearing culture suffers from different types of problems which are mentioned below:

Table-6
Problems of Muga rearing in different seasons:
Name of the crop Constraints
Aghuna (December-January) for Seed Longer Larval duration, Low temperature,
production outbreak of fungal diseases due to fog at night,
attract of fly pest.
Chotua (March-April) for Seed production Attract of fly pest, heavy wind, dry climate, less
leaf quantity for feeding the worm
Jethua(May-June) Commercial Shortage of seed due to low multiplication rate
in seed crops, on set of monsoon rain
Aherua (July-August) For Seed production High temperature, high rainfall, higher incidence
of diseases, low fecundity, hatching imparity.
Bhodia (August-September) for seed production High temperature, high humidity, poor
survivability, poor fecundity, poor hatching.
Kotia (October-November) Commercial Shortage of seed due to low rate of seed
multiplication.
Source: Field Study
On the other hand, inspite of having adequate potentials of Eri culture in the region, it is confined mostly
at the domestic level. Generally, the tribal people rear Eri in order to meet the necessity of their warm
cloth and food. The pupa is regarded as a delicious food item among them. However, the Eri culture
encounters the following problems;
1. Eri culture is highly unorganized. Cultivation of food plant or host plant is also highly
unsystematic and the rearing is mostly carried out on the basis of the availability of wild plants.
2. Being most of the Eri rearers are from poor families, they do not have appropriate rearing houses
and can not follow the recommended technology packages because of the financial constraints.
3. Like the Muga sector, Eri also suffers from the shortage of sufficient disease free seed for rearing
purpose.
Our study has revealed that the reeling, spinning and processing of both Muga and Eri are done in
a traditional manner. As stated above, at present, these activities are confined to the household level
instead of entrepreneurial. There is not any Industrial Estate for Muga reeling and Eri spinning. The
available machinery for doing these activities is also not sophisticated and there is also a scarcity of spare
parts of the machinery. The reelers and spinners have to face a lot of difficulties to get the required spare
parts if the machinery goes out of order. Muga reelers also face the paucity of working capital for which
they have to borrow money from money lenders at a very high rate of interest in order to run their
activities. The Muga weaving sector is also facing a number of problems such as absence of skilled
workers, lack of sufficient working capital, lack of the supply sufficient raw materials and high
operational cost. Moreover, there is not any facility of processing such as dyeing, embroidery, tailoring
etc. in the weaving clusters. Erratic power supply is also another problem that is being suffered by all the
people connected with Muga and Eri Silk sector.
It has been observed that due to the free entry of Chinese Silk into our country in recent times, our
weavers use to mix the Chinese Silk with Muga after a dye in Muga colour. This habit of the weavers will
certainly decrease the value of Muga Silk.
 One of the most interesting aspects that have been found from our study is that most of the
Weavers are not well aware of the worth of the product. They are also not so much interested in getting
training.
So far as the Eri sector is concerned, it is less organized than Muga sector. Eri spinning is regarded
by the spinners as a part time activity only. Just as the Muga sector, Eri sector is also having the problem
of working capital, lack of modern machinery to spine Eri cocoon, lack of processing facility etc. Due to
the lack of sufficient facility in Assam to spin and to make dresses, a large quantity of cocoons are sent to
Bhagalpur in Bihar every year.
Marketing is a complex process. In order to be expert in marketing, one needs to have business
acumen, finance, human resource management and technical expertise. Most of the People of Assam are
lacking these qualities and the people associating with Eri and Muga sector are also of no exception.
Conclusion:
Natural silk (Produced from silk worm like Muga and Eri) is known as the ‘Queen of Fabrics’ as
no other fabric can equal the beauty of silk in terms of its luxurious look and comforts to wear. The
‘Golden Muga Silk’, being a part of Assamese culture caters to the domestic need of the people of Assam
and other tribes of the North Eastern Region of India. The popularity of Muga silk has been spreading to
different parts of India as well as to other countries also because of its uniqueness. North Eastern Region
of India is the chief producer of these two gorgeous silk-Muga and Eri. Out of the states of the North
Eastern Region Assam is the biggest producer of both types of silk. Because of the uniqueness of Muga
and Eri silk and its association with satisfaction, luxury, comfort, glamour, attraction and sense of pride,
the craze for these products has been increasing in both national and international market. It is observed
that these both types of silk have got immense potentials for export. But it is noteworthy that the traders
of these silk are not able to meet the demand of the home market. The Central Silk Board, Government of
India, through its research institutes and the Government of Assam has been trying to increase the amount
of production by allowing different incentives to the producers. But because of the emergence of small tea
cultivation in the region in general and in Assam in particular, the land area of the Muga and Eri feed
plants has reduced. The pesticides, insecticides and different chemical manures used by both the small as
well as the big tea gardens have been polluting the environment of the region in general and of Assam in
particular.. This has harmed the natural silk industry in the region, for this sector needs pollution free
environment. Muga and Eri silk, being a green product, will definitely be able to help in increasing the
inflow of foreign exchange to our country. Like everywhere else, unemployment is one of the burning
problems of the region. So visualizing the huge potentials of both Muga and Eri silk sector as one of the
most promising economic activities for employment generation in the rural sector, a comprehensive action
plan has to be taken up by both the Central and the state governments to modernize the sectors.
 ---------------------------------------------o---------------------------------------
References:
Gogoi Jiban Kumar,” Muga Palur Bangsha Sangrakhyan”, an Assamese Book on Muga and Eri
Culture, Published by Rajib Gogoi, (2006-07), Jorhat, Assam.
Sankar S. Kotrannavar and K, K, Shetty, “Mystique & Splendor of Vanya Silk in India”- A
Conference Volume, Published by the Central Muga and Eri Research & Training Institute, Lahdaigarh,
Jorhat, Assam (2009).
• Dr. Jatindra Nath Saikia is the Selection Grade Lecturer (Associate Professor),
Department of Human Resource Management, Golaghat Commerce College,
Golaghat- 785 621, Assam. The author acknowledges that the information used in
this paper have been collected for a Major Research Project on “ Marketing of
Natural Silk Products Produced in Assam (A study of the biggest Muga and Eri Silk
Weaving Cluster of the World- Sualkuchi)” sponsored by the ICSSR, New Delhi.
• Email: jatin_saikia@yahoo.com