Our mission is to promote a sustainable lifestyle that strikes a balance with environment DFLs are a key to a rich harvest in the hands of the sericulturists.
In the year 1984, PRADAN a national level NGO started working with the tribal communities in the villages of erstwhile Bihar and now Jharkhand. It helped the traditional tasar silk cocoon rearers with techno managerial support to increase their incomes from cocoon rearing. Sericulture:
Modern and scientific package of practices were sourced from the R&D labs of the Government (Central Silk Board)
and extended into the field among the tribal practitioners. An innovation in the supply of disease free eggs/laying (DFLs) has resulted in its availability right in the village. This new activity has been instrumental in creating about 750 livelihoods for village youths. Due to this new scientific method, the crop has improved almost 4 fold (from an average of 10 to 12 cocoons per DFLs, it has gone up to 35-50 cocoons per DFLs). As on date (2011), over 25000 families have been impacted under this programme. The programme has been assisted with financial support from Govt of India through its Rural Development and Textile Ministry and ICCO an international Aid agency from Netherlands. Yarn making:
In the same area, PRADAN also organised women from poor households to take up an income generating activity like yarn making from the silk cocoons available locally. Today over 2580 women have been trained and equipped with the means to make a sustainable earning from yarn making. PRADAN subsequently facilitated the setting up of MASUTA PRODUCERS CO. LTD, a producers company owned by the yarn makers themselves. The company is staffed with professionals who help with centralized purchase of raw material and also in marketing of the yarn directly to the weaving communities or through value addition i.e. by making it into fabric and other woven items under a joint venture arrangement. Weaving stoles, scarves, saris and other items:
ECO TASAR SILK P LTD is a joint venture company promoted by PRADAN to promote its project yarn in the market by using its yarn exclusively to make sarees, Dupattas and fabrics etc and sell in the market. The JV serves three purposes: it helps expand the demand for Masuta’s yarn by using it in it’s own production, it also generates an income for Masuta from its activities which helps Masuta to stabilize its otherwise commodity business and finally it also is an outlet for introducing designs made in Masuta yarn in the market. The rationale for setting up a separate JV company was to enable Masuta to concentrate in its core business of managing the production of yarn and the yarn making groups in the village and leave the related activities like value addition to the yarn etc to such specialized JVs. To its credit Eco Tasar has also created livelihood opportunity for over 288 weavers and related artisans in the weaving cluster of Bhagalpur. The yarn being consumed by it in its weaving operations is over 40% of the total yarn produced by Masuta. Eco Tasar since inception. Eco Tasar has a turnover of 4.78 crores (2010-11) and is likely to post 8.5 crore turnover in 2011-12. Eco Tasar is also on an expansion spree to create greater demand for tasar silk yarn. It produced and sold over 45000 scarves, 15000 neckties, 44000 cushion covers and 200000 metres production in 2010-11. Eco tasar is leveraging its marketing outreach to help poor women eri yarn makers of Madhya Pradesh and Assam, India too. Eco tasar has invested in a fabrication unit to make and sell cushion covers and other home furnishings items. This unit is in partnership with an existing exporter of home furnishings. Eco Tasar supplies to stores across India and exports to Europe and US too. It counts FABINDIA, TRIBES, NALLI’S, CHINAMON, AMETHYST, CASABLANCA, PARTHA’S in India and WEST ELM (sub brand of Pottery Barn Group), NOVICA, SEVYA, FTO in US and Europe among its clients. www.pradan.net ( look up microenterprise section) www.ecotasar.com
