Karnataka   

Defective eggs spell doom for Kolar silk farmers

MYSTERY: A farmer shows silkworm cocoons that are abnormal.

KOLAR: Two teams of scientists from Karnataka Silk Research and Development Institute, Talaghatapura, and Central Silk Research Board, Mysore, have allayed the fears of sericulture farmers in the district who were worried about an unnatural development in the silk cocoons a few days ago. The development has caused loss of several lakhs of rupees to farmers.

The problem was first reported at Gaddekannoor village near here. Sericulture farmers Srinivas, Rajanna and Veeranna suffered huge loss because of this. The samples of the worms were sent to Central Silk Research Board, Mysore.

The team consisting of scientists M.N. Shekharappa, C.S. Patil and Chandrakala of institute at Talaghatapura visited the village and inspected the spot. “It is not at all a disease. Farmers need not worry about it. The unusual development might be the result of local weather and insecticides used,” Dr. Shekharappa said.

It was suspected that the eggs purchased at a private rearing centre might have been defective and cause the death of worms, the team said and underlined the need of inspection at a particular rearing centre.

A team from Central Silk Research Board in Mysore visited the village to take stock of the situation. Scientists S.D. Sharma, Balavenkatasubbaiah and S. Rajadorai spoke to the farmers and tried to allay their fears.

All the three farmers have brought “Kolar Gold” breed silk eggs from a private silk rearing centre belonging to Thimme Gowda of Jangamakote and started rearing them at their sheds.

The eggs had grown up to four days after putting into mountages (Chandrike - the traditional silkworm breeding frames). Normally, farmers take out the cocoons after one week of this process. But worms pierced from the cocoons within three days and got spoilt.

Even as the disease was yet to be identified, some farmers say that it may be “Sappe Roga” (slacharie), while some other suspect it to be Kempu Nachchu (grassarie). “About 1,000 eggs, estimated at Rs. 1.50 lakh, were destroyed because of this mysterious illness,” said farmer Srinivas.

“For the first time, I have experienced such a disease to the silkworms” was the reaction of another farmer Veeranna.

K.B. Shantamurthy, deputy director of Sericulture Department, who visited the village to inspect the development, said: “For the first time, this development has occurred. It is the rarest unhealthy trend that hit silkworms.”

The samples of the dead worms were sent to CSRB, Mysore.

“We have to wait till the results to know the nature of the problem,” he told The Hindu.

Mr. Shanthamurthy had a discussion with senior officers of the Sericulture Department in Bangalore on Wednesday about the issue. An inspection and demonstration has revealed that it was not a disease.

The opinion of scientists matched with this conclusion, sources in the department said.

Although this was the reality, farmers are waiting for an official note regarding this and test report from CSRB.

Notwithstanding the factor that it was not a disease, the Sericulture Department in the district has supplied disinfectant called Decol to the farmers and qualified staff were deputed to the area to supervise the developments.

Meanwhile, farmers’ organisations have urged the Government to take proper measures to identify the “disease”.

“The whole sericulture sector may be in peril if the disease attacks and spreads to other places. If such disease haunts sericulture farmers at the spinning stage, they may get into trouble and may be forced to opt out of taking up sericulture itself,” said Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha leader Holur Shankar.

“It is necessary to take a scientific view about the present problem to avoid unwanted developments in future and save farmers from the ruins,” Mr. Shankar added.

A Government should provide succour to the aggrieved farmers, he said.

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