SERICULTURE

ST. ANNS′ COLLEGE FOR WOMEN

VISAKHAPATNAM
Accredited by NAAC with ‘A’ grade

Written by

1st semester BSC.CBZ and MICROBIOLOGY

Topic: SERICULTURE
Mentor Principal Mentor

Name: S. Lakshmi Tulasi NAME: Dr. Sr. Prema kumara Name: Dr. G. Adhiseshu

Designation: Lecturer Designation: Principal Designation: Lecturer

Qualification: Msc. Zoology, Qualification: Msc. Botany, Qualification: Msc. Botany,

(Pursuing Ph.D) Ph.D M.Phil, Ph.D, B.Ed

 ACKNOWLEDGMENT

We would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to

my Zoology lecturer (S. LAXMI TULASI), as well as my Principal
(Dr. Sr. PREMA KUMARI) who gave me the golden opportunity
to write this wonderful book on the topic (SERICULTURE),
which also helped me in doing a lot of research and we came
to know about so many new things I am really thankful to them.
Secondly we would also like to thank my parents and friends
who helped me a lot in finalizing this book within the limited
time frame.
TOPIC NAME AUTHOR NAME
1. INTRODUCTION OF SERICULTURE M.VANDANA SAI DURGA

2. HISTORY OF SERICULTURE N.NIKSHYA SREE

3. TYPES OF SILK AND SILKWORMS D.SATHYAVATHI

4. LIFE CYCLE OF SILKWORM D. DURGA DEVI

5. MORICULTURE K. SRUTHI

6. PROCESS OF SERICULTURE

A) HARVESTING K. ANURADHA

B) COCOON DRYING P.SUBHAVANI

C) COCOON BOILING/ COOKING R.SHEKINAH

D) REELING NEHA DEVI

E) SPINNING P.CHANDHANA, M.JAHNAVI

F) TWISTING P.JYOSHNAVI

G) WEAVING P.ALEKHYA

7. PRODUCTS OF SERICULTURE K. SRUTHI

8. ADVANTAGES OF SERICULTURE R.ALEKHYA

9. DISADVANTAGES OF SERICULTURE K. ANURADHA

10. DISEASES IN SERICULTURE K.SAILAJA

11. GOVERNMENT SCHEMES N.SOWMYA

12. PEOPLE ECONOMICS IN SERICULTURE N.SOWMYA

13. PRODUCTIONS OF SERICULTURE S.POOJA PATEL

14. PREVENTIONS IN SERICULTURE SK.SANIYA

15. CONCLUSION D. DURGA DEVI

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 INDEX

TOPIC NAME PAGE NO:

1. INTRODUCTION OF SERICULTURE 1-2

2. HISTORY OF SERICULTURE 3-3

3. TYPES OF SILK AND SILKWORMS 4-6

4. LIFE CYCLE OF SILKWORM 7-9

5. MORICULTURE 10-12

6. PROCESS OF SERICULTURE 13-42

A) HARVESTING

B) COCOON DRYING

C) COCOON BOILING/ COOKING

D) REELING

E) SPINNING

F) TWISTING

G) WEAVING

7. PRODUCTS OF SERICULTURE 43-45

8. ADVANTAGES OF SERICULTURE 46-48

9. DISADVANTAGES OF SERICULTURE 49-50

10. DISEASES IN SERICULTURE 51-60

11. PRECAUTIONS IN SERICULTURE 61-63

12. PEOPLE ECONOMICS IN SERICULTURE 64-65

13. GOVERNMENT SCHEMES 66-69

14. PRODUCTIONS OF SERICULTURE 70-73

15. CONCLUSION 74-74

 Introduction to Sericulture
What is Sericulture?
Sericulture is the process of cultivating silkworms and extracting silk from
them. The caterpillars of the domestic silkmoth (also called ‘Bombyx Mori’)
are the most commonly used silkworm species in sericulture. Other types
of silkworms (such as Eri, Muga, and Tasar) are also cultivated for the
production of ‘wild silks’.Sericulture is an agro-based industry. It involves
rearing of silkworms for the production of raw silk, which is the yarn
obtained out of cocoons spun by certain species of insects. The major
activities of sericulture comprises of food-plant cultivation to feed the
silkworms which spin silk cocoons and reeling the cocoons.for unwinding
the silk filament for value added benefits such as processing and weaving.

What is Silk Made Up Of?

Silk is a fibre made up two different proteins – sericin and fibroin.
Approximately 80% of silk fibre is made up of fibroin, which is
concentrated at the core. This core is surrounded by a layer of sericin
(which makes up the remaining 20% of silk).The presence of pigments
(such as xanthophyll) in the sericin layer of the fibre imparts colour to the
silk.

Page No: 1
Where do we find Silk?
Geographically, Asia is the main producer of silk in the world and produces
over 95 % of the total global output. Though there are over 40 countries on
the world map of silk, bulk of it is produced in China and India, followed by
Japan, Brazil and Korea. China is the leading supplier of silk to the world.
India is the second largest producer of silk and also the largest consumer of
silk in the world. It has a strong tradition and culture bound domestic
market of silk. In India, mulberry silk is produced mainly in the states of
Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Jammu & Kashmir and West
Bengal, while the non-mulberry silks are produced in Jharkhand,
Chattisgarh, Orissa and north-eastern states.Silkworm larvae are fed
mulberry leaves, and, after the fourth moult, climb a twig placed near them
and spin their silken cocoons. The silk is a continuous-filament fiber
consisting of fibroinprotein secreted from two salivary glands in the head
of each larva, and a gum called sericin, which cements the two filaments.

Page No: 2
History of sericulture
Silk production has a long history. Silk was discovered by Xilingji (Hsiling-chi), wife
of China’s 3rd Emperor, Huangdi (Hoang-Ti), in 2640 B.C. While making tea,
Xilingji accidentally dropped a silkworm cocoon into a cup of hot water and found
that the silk fiber could be loosened and unwound. Fibers from several cocoons
could be twisted together to make a thread that was strong enough to be woven
into cloth. Thereafter, Hsiling chi discovered not only the means of raising silk
worms, but also the manners of reeling silk and of employing it to make
garments. Later sericulture spread throughout China, and silk became a precious
commodity, highly sought after by other countries. Demand for this exotic fabric
eventually created the lucrative trade route, the historically famous Silk Road or
Silk Route named after its most important commodity. This road helped in taking
silk westward and bringing gold, silver and wool to the East. With the mulberry
silk moth native to China, the Chinese had a monopoly on the world's silk
production. After 1200B.C. Chinese immigrants who had settled in Korea helped
in the emergence of silk industry in Korea. During the third century B.C.
Semiramus, a general of the army of Empress Singu-Kongo, invaded and
conquered Korea. Among his prisoners were some Sericulturists whom he
brought back to Japan. They helped in the establishment and growth of
sericulture industry in Japan. Another story is that a Chinese princess married an
Indian prince. She carried silkworm eggs/mulberry cocoons in her elaborate head
dress. She disclosed the secret of raising silkworms thus, silk production spread in
India. In 550A.D. moth eggs and mulberry seeds were smuggled from China by
two Nestorian monks, sent by Emperor Justinian-I and silk production began in
Byzantium. The technique of sericulture spread throughout the Mediterranean
countries during the 7 th century AD and then to Africa, Spain and Sicily. During
latter part of the 19th century, modern machinery, improved techniques and
intensive research helped the growth of sericulture industry in Japan. At present,
Japan, China, Korea, Italy, Soviet Union, France, Brazil and India are the chief silk
producing countries in the World.

Page No: 3
Types of Silkworm and Silk:-
Types of silk:-
Moths belonging to families Satumidae and Bombycidae of order lepidoptera and class Insecta
produce silk of commerce. There are many species of silk-moth which can produce the silk of
commerce, but only few have been exploited by man for the purpose. Mainly four types of silk
have been recognised which are secreted by different species of silk worms.

1. Mulberry Silk:-This silk is supposed to be superior in quality to the other types due to its
shining and creamy white colour. It is secreted by the caterpillar of Bombyx mori which feeds on
mulberry leaves.

2.Tasar Silk:- It is secreted by caterpillars of Antheraea mylitta, A. paphia, A. royeli, A. pernyi

A. proyeli etc. This silk is of coppery colour. They feed on the leaves of Arjun, Asan, Sal, Oak
and various other secondary food plants.

3.Muga Silk:- It is obtained from caterpillars of Antheraea assama which feeds on Som,
Champa and Moyankuri.

4. Eri Silk:- It is produced by caterpillars of Attacus ricini which feed on castor leaves. Its
colour is also creamy white like mulberry silk, but is less shining than the latter.

Types of Silkworms:-
1. Mulberry Silkworm-
Bombyx mori or the Mulberry silkworm is completely domesticated insect.B. mori which is
originated from the original Mandarina silkworm, known as Bombyx mandarina Moore.The adult
moths of B. mori is seldom, fat and are primarily concerned with reproduction. Their larvae are
voracious eaters. They feed on the leaves of mulberry treesBombyx mori produces cocoons
with continuous silk filament and therefore can be industrially reeled to produce raw silk.Some
moths are single brooded or univoltine and others are many brooded or multivoltine.
Owing to domestication, a large number of strains have evolved out, which produce cocoons of
various shapes, sizes, weights and colours ranging from white to yellow.

Page No: 4
2. Tassar Silkworms-
The tassar silkworms belong to the genus Antheraea and they are all wild silkworms. There are
many varieties such as the Chinese tassar silkworm — A. pernyi G.Tassar silk occupies the
third position; next to mulberry and eri silk. China is the biggest tassar silk producer of the world;
followed by India.Traditional tassar silk of India is the one produced by the tropical tassar
silkworm, Antheraea mylitta D. Its distribution extends along the tropical forest belt of India
starting from West Bengal in the east, extending upto Karnataka in the South-East through
Bihar, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.Tassar
silkworm is polyphagous, feeding on about two dozen host plantsThe Indian tassar silkworm —
A. mylitta Dury. The Japanese tassar silkworm — A. yamamai Guerin.

3. Muga Silkworms-
The muga silkworms (Antheraea assama) also belong to the same genus as tassar worms but
produce an unusual lustrous golden-yellow silk thread which is very attractive and strong.
The primary food plants of A. assama Westwood are Som (Machilus bombycina) and soalu
(Litsaea polyantha) leaves which are Assammese names. Muga silkworms are wild in nature,
muga moths (muga is an Assamese word meaning brown or amber) are distributed from
Western Himalayas to Nagaland, Cachar districts of Assam of south Tripura. But the sericulture
practice is confined to the Brahmaputra valley of Assam and Foot hills of East Garo hills of
Meghalaya. Ideal temperature for muga silkworm growth is 24-30°C and humidity 75-85%.This
silk is a traditional costume during the marriage ceremonies and festive occasions, the ladies
garments ‘Mekhala and Chadhar’ made of muga silk are a priced commodity in Assam.

4. Eri Silkworm-
Eri silkworms Samia cynthia ricini (Huts) belong to family Saturniidae. The local name eri
derives from its primary food plant ‘era’ (castor), so commonly known as castor silkworm is a

Page No: 5
domesticated and reared on castor oil plant leaves so as to produce a white or brick-red silk
popularly known as ert silk.The distribution of eri silkworm in North eastern India is mostly
confined to the Brahmaputra valley and the surrounding areas extending to the foot hills of
Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh upto about 3000’ altitude.
Manipur are predominantly eri growing areas of this region.Both male and female have brown,
black and green coloured wings with white “crescent markings and wooly white abdomen”. The
male is smaller than female bearing bushy antennae and narrower abdomen.

Page No: 6
The Life Cycle of Silkworm
The life cycle of a silk moth begins when a female silk moth lays eggs. These eggs hatch into
caterpillars or larvae, which are commonly known as silkworms. The silkworms feed on
mulberry leaves and go through several stages of growth. During the pupa stage, the silkworm
spins a protective cocoon around itself. Inside the cocoon, the silkworm swings its head and
spins a fiber made of protein, forming the silk fiber. The cocoon acts as a protective covering for
the pupa. Silk threads, also known as yarn, are obtained from the cocoon of the silk moth.

Silkworm Lifecycle:
1. Egg stage:
 An egg is the first stage of the life cycle of the silkworm.
 The egg is laid by a female moth which is mostly the size of small dots, usually in
clusters on surfaces such as leaves or twigs.
 A female moth lays more than 350 eggs at a time.
 The eggs are tiny, ranging in size from 1 to 2 millimeters, and have a yellowish or whitish
color.
 They are covered with a protective coating called sericin, which helps keep them safe
until conditions are favorable for hatching.
 The incubation period for the eggs lasts about 10 to 14 days, depending on the
temperature and humidity.
 In the springtime, the eggs hatch due to the warmth in the air.
 This procedure happens once in every year.

Page No: 7
2. Larva Stage:
 Once the eggs hatch, tiny silkworm larvae or caterpillars emerge.
 These larvae have a characteristic appearance with a small head, soft body, and
numerous tiny hairs covering their skin.
 At this stage, the silkworms have a strong appetite and they feed on mulberry leaves
and consume a large amount of these leaves for around 30 days before going to the
next stage.
 The larvae undergo several molting stages, shedding their skin to accommodate their
growing bodies.

3. Pupa Stage:
 After completing their final instar, the silkworms enter the pupa stage.
 The pupa is the resting/ motionless or transitional stage of development.
 Inside the pupa, major changes occur as the silkworm undergoes metamorphosis to
transform into an adult silk moth.
 During this stage, the silkworm spins a protective cocoon around itself using silk threads
produced from special glands in its head.
 The cocoon serves as a shield and provides a safe environment for the pupa to undergo
its transformation.
 In this stage, people kill the pupa by plunging the cocoon into boiling water and unwind
the silk thread.

Page No: 8
4. Cocoon Stage:
 In this stage, silkworms spin a protective cocoon around itself.
 It is the size of a small cotton ball and is made of a single thread of silk.
 The silkworm completes the construction of its cocoon within a few days.
 The cocoon is oval-shaped and consists of a single continuous silk filament, which can
measure up to 900 meters long.
 The silk filament is made up of two proteins: fibroin, which gives the thread its strength,
and sericin, a gummy substance that holds the fibers together.
 The silk fibers produced by the silkworm serve as the raw material for silk production.
 The cocoon provides protection to the developing pupa from predators and external

conditions.

5. Moth Stage:
 Inside the cocoon, the pupa undergoes complete metamorphosis, transforming into an
adult silk moth.
 When the transformation is complete, the adult moth secretes a special enzyme to
dissolve a portion of the cocoon, creating an exit hole.
 The silk moth emerges from the cocoon through this hole, usually during the night.
 The adult silk moth has a short lifespan, ranging from about 5 to 10 days.
 The primary purpose of the adult silk moth is to reproduce, and it does not possess
functional mouthparts or a digestive system.
 These stages encompass the remarkable lifecycle of a silkworm, showcasing their ability
to produce silk and undergo metamorphosis.
 The female moth lays eggs after mating and thus the life cycle of silkworm begins again.

Page No: 9
MORICULTURE:
Sericulture is dependent on moriculture. The cultivation of mulberry plants to
obtain feed for silkworms and to obtain silk is called moriculture. The first
time mulberry plant cultivation was carried out was in 2800 BC by the chin–
nong. The raw silk industry is based on moriculture and sericulture. To
increase silk production and cocoon production moriculture is an important
process. Moriculture techniques have been improved with time to reduce
production costs in sericulture. Approximately 4,00,000 hectares of farmland
is used for the cultivation of mulberry plants. Each hectare of the land yields
approximately 12000 – 15000 kg of mulberry leaves. Presently, the
production of mulberry leaves has been increased due to advanced techniques
of cultivation of mulberry plants. Morus alba, Morus indica, Morus latifolia,
Morus nigra are the main four species of mulberry plant which are found in
India.

OPTIMUM CLIMATIC CONDITIONS FOR MORICULTURE:

Mulberry plants may thrive under a wide range of climatic conditions. 24⁰ to
28⁰ temperature is suitable for optimum growth of mulberry plants. Although
they give average yield at 18⁰ - 24⁰ temperatures as well. It grows well in
places that have an annual rainfall of 600 – 2500 mm. It requires 350m3/ha
water every ten days. Sunshine is the controlling factor of the growth of
mulberry plants. It requires 9-13 hours of sunshine per day.

SOIL CONDITIONS FOR MORICULTURE:

Clayey and loamy soils are suitable for mulberry plants. Soil should be deep,
fertile and porous with good water holding capacity. The ideal pH for its best
growth is 6.2 – 6.8. Land preparation for mulberry plant cultivation involves
Page No: 10
deep ploughing up to a depth of 30 – 35cm. Cultivation of Kanva – 2 of Morus
indica is common in India for moriculture. Apart from Kanva – 2, S-36, S-54
etc. are also belongs to M. indica and are used for moriculture.

SPACING OF MULBERRY PLANTS :

The spacing of mulberry plants depends on the soil conditions. For black and
heavy soils, 90 × 90 cm spacing. While for sloppy soil of hilly areas 120 × 60
cm spacing.

HARVESTING OF MULBERRY LEAVES FROM THE PLANT :

Let the mulberry plants grow up to an optimum extent. After their optimum
growth, mulberry leaves can be harvested and can be used as feed for
silkworms. Mulberry leaves must be harvested at the right time as fully grown
mulberry leaves contain less moisture than partially grown leaves. Leaf
picking and branch cutting are the methods that are used in the harvesting of
mulberry leaves. Another well-known harvesting method of mulberry leaves
is whole shoot harvesting.

Page No: 11
FERTILIZERS USED IN MORICULTURE:
It requires two doses of fertilizer in one season. Suphala fertilizer is used after
two months of planting the mulberry saplings. During this time, weeding is
also done. The second time weeding is done after 2 – 3 months of planting.

PRESERVATION OF LEAVES:
Mulberry leaves must be kept in a basket full of moisture. The basket should
be lined with a clean and wet cotton cloth. It should also be covered with a wet
and clean cloth. When preservation of mulberry leaves is done in bulk then
preservation chambers are used. Moist and green mulberry leaves are suitable
for feeding the silk moths. The leaves should be heaped loosely and
periodically turned. By doing this aeration is provided to leaves for better
preservation. Optimum temperature and humidity are required for the
preservation of mulberry leaves.

Page No: 12
 PROCESSES OF SERICULTURE
1. Harvesting process
Introduction of harvesting:
When the mature larva is placed in the mountage, it will spin a cocoon by
ejecting a silk filament from its silk gland through an opening (spinneret). Silk
filament is protein in nature,which hardens in contact with the air. You know
the mature silkworm larva will take 3-4 days to spin a cocoon. After complete
ejection of silk and formation of cocoon, metamorphosis takes place and the
larva transforms into pupa. In between, there is pre-pupal stage. This
transient phase is very delicate. Normally, within 10 days, the pupa again
undergoes metamorphosis and emerges as a moth by piercing the cocoon.

Time of harvest :
Harvest is commonly used to mean gathering or collection of ripen crops,
especially in agriculture produce. In sericulture, harvest signifies to the
collection and gathering of produce cocoons from spinning tray or mountage.
After spinning a cocoon, the larva undergo metamorphosis (complete change
in morphology) and transforms into pupa. For completion of spinning and
metamorphosis, about 5-6 days are required and you have to allow the larva
for this process. While harvesting, it may also be considered that during
summer, the process is faster, where as in cooler months, it is slower. After
pupation, when the integument of the pupa turns brown and hard on the 5th
day, the cocoon may be harvested. The safest method is checking the
condition of pupa by slit open a few pupa, pre mature collection of cocoons
are harvesting may lead to loss of silk content of the cocoon due to incomplete
spinning or killing the delicate pre-pupa or pupa within the cocoons. Killing of

Page No: 13
pre-pupa or tender early pupa inside the cocoon will lead to stained cocoons,
rendering it unfit for reeling.
To avoid this, harvest cocoons at 6th day after completion of full 5 days in
mountage, counted
from the last day of mounting. The pupa will be hard and cocoon shell will be
dry. This condition will be suitable for safe handling and transportation of
cocoon. Cocoons release moisture even after completion of spinning. Delayed
harvest will lead to weight loss of cocoons. So, you should stick to the time of
harvest.

METHODS OF HARVEST:
Methods for harvesting of silk cocoons varies, depending upon the
mountage(spinning tray)
used. Whatever the methods of harvest, first you remove litters and left-over
of leaves, dead
or un-spun larva, naked pupa (without cocoon), flimsy and melted cocoons
from the mountage. Flimsy and melted cocoons may spoil the good cocoons by
spilling stain.

Mounting Methods
Different Types of Mountages Used:
Mountages The most important device that helps or supports the silkworms
(larvae) for
comfortable spinning their cocoon is called cocoonage or mountage.
Mountages play a vital role in quality cocoon production. Farmer’s depending
upon their resources use different
types of materials available locally for making mountages. Types of material
used, finishing
of mountages, space available for spinning determines both the quality and
quantity of the
cocoons. Nearly 2 % of mature larvae make naked cocoons for want of proper
mountages or cocooning space. To avoid formation of naked or deformed
cocoons, ripe worms are picked from the rearing platforms and released on an
appropriate mountages. It is used to enable the ripe worm to spin cocoon.

Page No: 14
Mounting Methods
1.Chandrika:
The most, common form of mountage in India is “Chandrika”. It is a
rectangular bamboo mat
on which a spiral bamboo tape is tied. The chandrika measures 1.8 m X 1.2 m.
The tape is
about 4-5 cm. Broad and space between the spirals is about 4-5 cm. It became
more popular than any other mountage because of the following advantages.
● Easily manufactured in the villages by bamboo weavers.
● Can be stored easily.
● It provides easy passage of air for quick drying of excreta of spinning
worms and avoids staining.
● Easy to transport.
● Easy to disinfect.
● Low cost and light weight.

2. Screen-type Mountage:
It is made of bamboo or wooden or plastic reapers on which, instead of spiral
bamboo tape, longitudinal strips with triangular peaks are placed. The screen
can be folded and stored.This mountage can be kept clean and well- ventilated
and hence, cocoons spun on this mountage are of good quality. It is more
durable than chandrika. But occurrences of double cocoons are frequent in it.

Page No: 15
3. Plastic Mountage:
Like Chandrika, but is made from plastic instead of bamboo and hence, more
durable, easy to clean, not prone to rodent attack, and produce lesser number
of double cocoons. Once invested, further maintenance, care or expenditure
are not incurred. But these mountages are costly than Chandrika. The cocoons
produced on these mountages are more flimsy and not of uniform size and
hence not frequently used by farmers.

4. Japanese low Cost Mountage:

In this modified Japanese mountage, a wooden frame of 4 longitudinal rods is
attached by means of cross-spokes at two ends to a central axis. Each rod has
a number of pegs placed at
equal distances. These pegs are connected by long threads of twisted rice
straw in a regular pattern like that of charpoy.The size of frame and the
number of pegs can be modified according to the requirement of the rearer.
This mountage is cheap, more durable and make less chances of disease
spread.

Page No: 16
5. Bamboo Strip Mountage:
Made of bamboo stirps that are either nailed on wooden reaper or placed in
grooves of wooden reapers. Several such frames are placed one above the
other with the lower one keeping on four uniform bricks or wooden blocks.
This mountages are cheap, durable, easy to handle, and harvest the cocoons.

6. Bottle Brush Mountage:

This recently introduced mountage consists of a thick coconut or jute fibre
rope into which 6-9 sticks (midrib of coconut leaves) are inserted very
closely.These are used by the worms as support. The worms spin their
cocoons in the space between the sticks. This mountage is very cheap; can be
made easily and occupies little space compared to Chandrika.

Page No: 17
7. Rotary mountage:
It has pieces of cardboard to form 13 rows, consisting of 12 sections and each
and amounting to 156 sections. Ten pieces are put into frame. When this
frame is hung up with wire holding at by ends, the frame can be turned
around two axes. This frame produces fewer spoiled cocoons and raises the
reliability of cocoons. Good cocoon percentage is more than 80. It is the best
type and suitable for large scale silkworm rearing because it does not only
lead to increased cocoon quality but also saves labour in mounting and
harvesting.

Page No: 18
2. Drying process of cocoon:

Cocoon drying, adept person all know, the purpose is to prevent the cocoon
living pupa transferred during storage, silkworm legacy parasitic fly eggs out
of larvae and pupae of decay and damage the cocoon layer, at the same time
also make cocoon layer after heat treatment appropriate change outer soluble
properties of sericin, raised strong cocoon cooking resistance, protection of
non-broken cocoon silk reeling and storage.

To obtain the silkworm cocoon with higher drying quality, a lot of

manufacturers also tried a lot of methods really, but always in the
traditional method in the circle straight dry method and dry method. But
no matter which kind has the fatal weakness to be able to dry fresh cocoon
at a time, although simplified the operation process, reduce the chance of
cocoon damage, but easy to cause fresh cocoon backlog. Dry again for the
first time to fresh cocoon baking onto a baking rate at about 60% of semi-
dry cocoon, by using low temperature drying for a second time to dry, this
method can improve the utilization of drying uniformity and drying
equipment, is also the current commonly used methods for many factory,
but there are certain problems of temperature and humidity control does
not reach the designated position, pupa body humidity is higher, is not
conducive to the late of silk reeling.

Page No: 19
In fact, the silkworm cocoon is mainly composed of cocoon layer and pupa
body. The weight of cocoon layer in general fresh cocoon only accounts for
18%-24%. Fresh cocoons contain a lot of water, usually 100 kilograms of
fresh cocoons baked to the appropriate dry cocoon to remove about 60
kilograms of water. Under normal circumstances, the moisture content of
fresh cocoons is about 13%-15%, and that of pupae is about 73-77%. So,
silkworm cocoon drying is mainly to remove the water in the pupa body,
and the cocoon layer only lost a small amount of water. The traditional
methods are not nearly as sophisticated.

Before baking silkworm cocoons with a heat pump dryer, the amount of
cocoons laid according to the thickness of laid cocoons, generally not more
than two half cocoon horizontal height is appropriate, the use of vertical
penetration air circulation dryer to not more than three high is
appropriate. The main processing conditions of drying silkworm cocoons
are temperature, humidity, wind speed, cocoon amount and drying time.
Must conform to the law of water evaporation at each stage of drying, such
as temperature should be gradually reduced from high to low, humidity
gradually increased from low, wind speed gradually reduced from large to
small.

Page No: 20
The drying process of silkworm cocoon is mainly divided into three stages:
preheating, constant drying and decelerating drying:

1. Preheating stage: the fresh cocoon heating, the heat energy through
the cocoon layer into the cocoon chamber to kill the pupa body, pupa
body water into the evaporation period. At this stage, the
temperature has to rise gradually, but rapidly.

2. At the stage of constant drying, the water evaporation of pupae is the

most and the evaporation rate is the fastest. During this period, the
diffusion rate of water in the chrysalis is in equilibrium with the
evaporation rate on the surface of the chrysalis. The temperature of
the chrysalis is lower than the air temperature in the drying
chamber, and the temperature of the chrysalis is lower than the
temperature of the chrysalis, until the diffusion rate of water in the
chrysalis gradually falls behind the evaporation rate on the surface of
the chrysalis.

3. The drying phase in which the moisture in the cocoon gradually

decreases and the evaporation rate correspondingly slows down.
During this period, the temperature of the cocoon gradually rises
close to that of hot air. When the inside of the pupa begins to

Page No: 21
evaporate, the slowing down and drying turns from the first stage to
the second stage until the drying ends.

Page No: 22
3. COCOON BOILING
The sericin or the silk gum present on the cocoon filament keeps them
together or the silk gum present on the cocoon filament keeps them together.
( or ) The silk gum present on the cocoon filament keeps them together
compactly in the shell. This is softened with hot water or steam, so that the
filament can be wound on the reel without breaks or entanglement. This
process is called cocoon cooking wound on the reel without breaks or
entanglement. There are different methods of cooking to suit the different
reeling systems. Important are different methods of cooking to suit the
different reeling systems.

Cooking for float reeling

Generally cooking for float reeling is followed both in small and big In India,
The cooking for float reeling is divided into two types namely (open pan
cooking) ,and (three pan cooking).
OPEN PAN COOKING

This method consists in cooking cocoons in ordinary open pans or vessels

made of either earthenware or copper sheet with sheet with tinning inside the
vessel. Water is poured into the vessel and brought to boiling by application of
direct heat from the fire below the basin.
When the water begins to boil a handful of cocoons is put into the boiling
water and kept in water.

Page No: 23
When the cocoons appear dull in color and water for a few minutes by
using a perforated ladle Somewhat translucent, they feel soapy to touch
and the filaments easily come off when pulled. This method of cooking,
though simple, is technically defective. The outer layers of the cocoon in
contact with hot water get cooked earlier than the middle or inner layers
This results in unnecessary dissolution softening of the gum which causes
the filament to come off in lump and also spoils the cohesion, luster and
cleanness of the reeled silk. To come off in lump and also spoils the
cohesion, luster and cleanness of the reeled silk.Whereas, if the cocoons are
removed for reeling soon after the outer layers are cooked, reeling
becomes difficult when the middle and inner layers are reached.

In either case wastage of silk increases.

However, the defect of under cooking is overcome to some extent by
keeping the reeling water at a high temperature, which adds to the cost of
reeling besides causing other inconveniences to the reeler. These defects of
the common open-pan system of cooking are reduced to some extent in
cooking basins provided with an automatic brushing device. In this method
when the brush is lowered into the basin after the exterior of the cocoons
is cooked, the brush fits snugly into the basin and keeps the cocoons well
pressed down in the boiling water. This enables cooking to be continued
under covered conditions when the brushing is in progress, thereby forcing
the boiling water to infiltrate through the shell layers, and soften and
loosen the layers evenly throughout. As cooking and brushing are done in
the same small basin containing a small quantity of water, the dirt and
deleterious substances released from the cocoons make the water dirty
with suspended impurities very soon, and the cooking operative has to
keep draining the water regularly and adding freshwater to the basin.

Page No: 24
 This naturally increases the consumption of water and steam for heating
the water. Increased consumption of water and steam becomes a serious
problem where good reeling water and boiler fuel are scarce and costly.
Due to the smallness of the size of the cooking basin only small quantities
of cocoons can be cooked at a time with the result that the capacity of the
basin to supply cooked cocoons for reeling becomes limited. This limitation
has to be compensated by increasing the number of cooking units and
employing more cooking operatives. All this involves considerable extra
expenditure on equipment, labor and space. Lastly, as cooking of cocoons
even of the same batch is done in several basins in small quantities by
different operatives, there are bound to be variations in the degree of
cooking or in the quantity of waste removed from cocoons in the several
basins. Thus, this type of cooking is not conducive to standardization of
cooking and removal of waste, and therefore, offers no scope for
standardization of the economics of cooking operation.
The only advantage of importance in this system is that the cooking
operations are done in front of the reeler himself who can give timely
instructions and guidance to the cooker regarding the degree of cooking
required, and the cooker can easily manipulate the operations to suit the
requirements of the reeler.
Cocoons are two of type colors
1. Yellow cocoons

2. white cocoons

Page No: 25
THREE PAN COOKING :

The deficiencies of the open pan type cooking have been overcome to a
considerable extent. Totally different from adopting a system of cooking
totally different from that of the basin type. Three fairly large sized porcelain
basins fitted in a row on equipment having three fairly large sized porcelain
basins fitted in a row on a platform or table. The basins are provided with The
basins are provided with water and steam connections. The accessory
equipment consists of water and steam connections. Holding the cocoons, a
wire mesh disc of a special design with a long handled brass wire. An open
shelf is provided as an integral part of the table in front of the basins for
keeping the accessories. Towards the end of the table a platform for keeping
the trough which receives the accessories. In addition to these, the cooking
unit is served by trolleys for carrying small wooden tubs with water. cocoons
from the cooking unit to the reeling basins. The Water in the receiving trough
and in the cocoon carrier basins is kept at 40ºC-45ºC. A required quantity of
cocoons is taken and placed in the wire cage and after securely fastening the
cage it and placing It is in the wire cage and after securely fastening the cage it
is immersed in the first pan for about 60 seconds. and expelled. The cocoon
cage is briskly lifted out of this pan and immersed in the second pan
containing water at 65ºC for 30 or 40 seconds. Here the air inside the cocoons
contracts and C for 30 or 40 seconds. Contracts and water from the basin is
sucked in. Hot water permeates as a result of the first dip. In this process
water from the basin is sucked in.
The cocoon shell layers are loosened and the hot water entering through the
shell softens and shells the sericin later and water partly files the cocoon
cavity. From the second pan the cocoons are discharged into the third pan

Page No: 26
having water at 90 or 95ºC, and the cocoons are kept immersed by pressing
down with the specially designed wire mesh disc. From the third pan the
cocoons are transferred using long handled perforated ladles to the cocoon-
receiving trough for onward supply in small buckets to the reeling basins for
brushing and reeling. The process is made continuous by having two or more
sets of the accessories and charging the vacant basins with cages with freshly
filled cocoons as quickly as possible.
Cocoon cooking for sunken reeling

Cocoon Cooking Machine

Cocoonhopper part, Soaking part, High temperature permeating part, low
temperature permeating part, Cooking part, Adjusting part, Low temperature
finishing part, Cocoon outlet.
The six different processes or treatments to the cocoons passing through the
six chambers of the machine are as follows:
FIRST CHAMBER
This is called the "Dipping" or "Wetting" chamber. It contains water at 40°C to
42°C where the cocoons are treated for about 30 to 50 seconds. The surface
layers of the cocoons which will be in direct contact with hot water swell
slightly due to wetting.

SECOND CHAMBER
This is the steaming or steam blasting chamber. The wetted cocoons coming
in from the first chamber are exposed to the action of steam at about 90°-

Page No: 27
95°C at proper steam pressure. The effect of this treatment is that the air
inside the cocoon cavity is heated up to cause its expansion and partial
replacement. As the hot dry steam is likely to make the sericin layers stiff and
slightly less soluble, the optimum duration of treatment is limited to 60
seconds.

THIRD CHAMBER
This is the permeating or infiltration chamber and contains water at 40°-60°C.
Due to the lower temperature, a partial condensation of the steam occurs in
the cocoon cavity and the cocoon sucks in water thereby uniformly wetting all
the layers of the silk in the shell, without dissolving the sericin. Treatment
time is 30 seconds.

FOURTH CHAMBER
This is the steam cooking chamber in which the cocoons from the third
chamber are subjected to steam treatment for 118 to 120 seconds keeping the
temperature and pressure at 95°C to 98°C and 0.33 kg per cm3 respectively.
This treatment causes the sericin to swell and soften the silk layers, and the
steam to fill up the cocoon cavity.
FIFTH CHAMBER
This is the cocoon boiling and adjusting chamber and is very important
because it is in this chamber that the steam contents of the cocoon cavity is
replaced by water by gradual condensation of steam in the cocoon obtained
by gradual cooling of the water from 98° to 60°C. Accurate maintenance of the
reducing temperature - gradient is most important because too sudden
cooling causes the cocoon to collapse or buckle. Actual time for the operation
depends upon the compactness and other qualities of the shell. Weaker
cocoons naturally require a prolonged gradient in temperature adjustment,
and therefore take longer time.

SIXTH CHAMBER
This is the finishing chamber containing water at 50°-60°C. In this chamber
water easily enters and fills up whatever space is still left in the cocoon cavity

Page No: 28
leaving only about 3% or less of air space. Cocoons in this condition after 10
or 11 minutes are automatically discharged into a receiving trough containing
hot water at 40°-50°C for transfer to the next process of brushing. The
cocoons discharged from the boiling machine are filled with water and
therefore sink in reeling water during the reeling operations. Sometimes
certain chemicals are also used in the infiltration chamber toenhance
reliability.
In that event the degree of boiling according to the quality of cocoons is
adjusted. Generally the fiber swells and the surrounding area is loosened. The
swelling or softening can be accelerated with the aid of swelling agents of the
non-ionic or anionic type to improve the unwinding ratio of the filament.
These agents are selected according to the hardness of the cocoon shell.
Optimum dosages are arrived at after trials with the quality of cocoons
available in different regions and seasons.
The main advantages of this method of cocoon boiling for the sunken
system of reeling are:
1. Degree of cooking is uniformly achieved in all cocoons and in all
layers.
2. Reliability is improved and enables reeling of 40 to 50 ends by one
reeler thus increasing the output per reeler.
3. Only nine to ten trained workers are required for supplying cooked
cocoons to about 400 multi-end basins, whereas in the ordinary
type a minimum of 200 cookers would be required. This economy in
labor requirements is of special importance in countries where
labor is scarce and costly.
4. The percentage of wastage is reduced and standardized.
5. As reeling is done in tepid or lukewarm water, steam consumption
for heating reeling water is considerably reduced and therefore,
water and fuel economy is attained. Using less steam in the reeling
hall reduces mill dampness and vapor formation in summer and
winter. Reduced mill' dampness considerably prevents occurrence
of such defects as hard gum spots, ribbing and plastering defects and
improves ventilation and visibility.

Page No: 29
 6. Low temperature of reeling water does not injure the fingers and
palm of the reelers and, therefore, does not in any way impair their
reeling efficiency.
7. Due to non dissolution of sericin and avoidance of over-softening of
the sericin, cohesion of' reeled silk is very good.

The modern concept of rational reeling is to unwind the filament at a slow

speed to avoid excessive tension and to provide sufficient opportunity to
maintain the requisite number of cocoons at each end. In other words, slow
reeling over a number of ends ensures higher productivity and greater
evenness and cleanliness standards for the raw silk.

CHEMICAL POWDERS :
● Cocoon Boiling is used in some chemical powders ,FIBROIN,SILK
SERICIN POWDER.

Page No: 30
4.REELING PROCESS
Introduction of reeling:
Silk reeling is a process of production of silk thread by unwinding the
filaments of required number of cocoons. Silk reeling is closely related to
agro based cocoon raw produced by farmers .The cocoon is spun by
silkworm by feeding on Mulberry host plant.This edition is confined to
Mulberry silk which shares a major chunk of total silk production.There are
other three types of silks classified as wild silks as originally they were a
forest produce which were later on partially domesticated.

Raw material
Cocoon is the raw material for Silk reeling produced by sericulture
farmers.It is a heterogeneous material influenced by a combination of
multiple factors such as soil characteristics, plantation techniques, variety
of food plants,Race ofsilk worms ,lrrigation facilities, Rearing techniques,
Geographical conditions etc.

SEQUENCES OF OPERATIONS IN MULBERRY SILK

1. COCOON MARKETS
2. COCOON DRYING/STIFLING
3. SORTING OF COCOONS
4. COCOON MIXING
5. COCOON COOKING
6. REELING
7. RE-REELING
8. LACING AND SKEINING
9. BUNDLINGS.

Page No: 31
MULBERRY SILK REELING
Reeling is a process where the raw silk filaments from cocoons are
combined and wound on to a reel to make silk thread of standard sizes. The
reeling process demands trouble free running without much breaks &with
minimum wastage. Mulberry silk reeling on Multimedia reeling machine.

Types of reeling:
1. Charaka
2. Cottage Basin
3. Multi end reeling machine
4. Automatic Reeling

1. Charaka
Charaka is a crude & traditional system of reeling which is widely
employed for producing coarse variety of silk yarn and Dupion yarn mainly
utilizing defective Cocoons.

2. Cottage basin
It is an improved version over charaka with gadgets like button, croissure
wheels and jetteboutte. Cooking and reeling basins are separated and an
operator will look after 6-8 ends/basin. The production ranges from 0.8 kg-
1.0 kg/basin depending upon theDenier of years reeled.

Page No: 32
3. Multi end reeling machine
It is an improved version over Cottage basin. The production ranges from
0.7-1.2 kg/basin depending upon denier of the yarn reeled. One operator
looks after 10 ends/basin It has features like button, croissure wheels,
jetteboute, Individual reel stop motion & planetary traverse.

4. Automatic reeling
It is the ultimate version in silk reeling .Most of the operations such as
cooking& brushing, cocoon feeding to reeling basins, Denier maintenance
are automatic. Oneoperator can look after more than 40 ends .In Indian
conditions there is a 50% saving of labour besides production of highly
quality 2A grade mulberry silk.

Page No: 33
5. Spinning:
The process for producing single yarn out of discontinuous filament of cocoon
is known as Spinning. The process by which silkworm produce cocoons is also
spinning. Eri cocoons are spun since they are opening mouthed and not
composed of continuous filament.

Eri cocoons spinning are simple and the cocoons are spun using ‘Takli’ in
almost all the production areas, however the spinning activities are largely
concentrated in Palasbari, Bijoynagar, Goalpara, Kokrajhar and Udalguri. Of
late, the Department of Sericulture, Govt. of Assam and Central Silk Board,
Govt. of India intensified the Eri spinning activities after popularisation of the
latest interventions. i.e. CSTRI spinning wheel and Ambar Charka spinning
wheel. The large quantities of the Silk yarn produced in the state is utilised
within the production state and small quantity of Eri yarn is sold outside the
state. ‘Takli’ the age-old device for Eri spinning is still in vogue. About 57%
spinners are engaged in spinning of yarn on ‘Takli’ and there is demand for
such yarn or products in domestic as well as international market. For
increasing the productivity of ‘Takli’ type yarn, an improved Flier spindletype-
spinning machine has been developed by Hindustan Machineries, Bhagalpur
which is being evaluated for final recommendation. This machine can be used
to meet the demand of ‘Takli’ type yarn suited for weft. The machine also can
be used for wet spinning to produce yarn suited for warp purpose. The
productivity of this device is 60-100 gm per day as compared to 40 gm per
day on Takli.

Page No: 34
6. Twisting
● Twisting is the process of reeling the bundles of yarn to skein lacing. It
can be achieved by winding two strands of silk into multiple threads.
These multiple spools are again used to prepare the warp.
● Silk is rarely used directly for weaving. It undergoes the process of
twisting/doubling and twisting depending on the type of fabric being
produced.
● The first level of twist inserted to the thread is referred to as primary
twist and the second level of twist is referred to as secondary twist. The
twisting machines used for silk are up twisters.
● The doubling bobbins are placed on the spindles rotating at very high
speed of about 8000 to 10000rpm.

● The yarn passes through the traveller or flyer guide and the traverse
guide on to the perforated bobbins placed on the take up roller.
● The flyer also acts as a tensioning device and facilitates to impart
uniform twist especially higher levels of twist. The tendency of
ballooning more so in the case of coarse denier yarn is counteracted by
the use of flyer.
● The twist applied to the thread depends upon the relation between the
speed of rotation of the spindles and the winding speed of the take-up
bobbins.
Page No: 35
● The twist level can be altered by altering the speed of the take-up roller.
● It is necessary to frequently check the speed of rotation of the spindle,
since variation in spindle speed would result in twist variations.
● Tachometer/stroboscope can be used for the purpose. The tension at
which threads are being wound must also be checked in all parts of the
frame, as sunless equal tension is maintained during twisting it will
produce saw-thread.
● The twist in the yarn is defined by the number of turns per unit length
of the yarn viz twists per meter (TPM) or Twist Per Inch (TPI) and the
direction of twist. There are two possibilities of the direction of twist
namely clockwise and anticlockwise designated as “Z” and “S” Twists
respectively.
● The tenacity of the raw silk slightly increase upto certain level of twist
and exhibits a slow but continuous decrease in tenacity with increase in
twist.
● The rate of decrease in tenacity with increasing twist is higher as the
number of plies increase.
● Twisting affects the brilliancy of a thread.
● As the twist increases, the luster of the thread decreases and the thread
becomes opaque.
● This is due to the roughness of the thread‟s surface caused by twisting,
the ridges of the spirals making shadows with loss of reflected light.
● Twisting further has the effect of shortening the thread used. The
shortening is very little for fine deniers and for limited number of twist,
but becomes significant for coarse deniers and as the number of turns
increases.
● The shortening also affects the denier of the thread, which increases in
proportion to the reduction in length.

Page No: 36
7. WEAVING
Forming a woven fabric requires five basic loom functions or motions:
shedding, filling insertion, beat-up, let-off, and take-up. The first three motions
take place in a set time interval and follow one another sequentially. Because
these motions cannot happen simultaneously, conventional weaving is a
single-phase process. Some machines can insert a number of picks almost
simultaneously into a number of shed openings and beat each pick into the
fabric. However, these multiphase (multished) machines have limited design
potential and generate more lint when weaving spun yarns.

Shedding
This loom function separates all the warp yarns into a weave shed (opening)
formed between a top shed (yarns that are raised) and a bottom shed (yarns
that are not raised). Each weft yarn is inserted into the opening created by
shedding of the warp yarns. Devices called harnesses contain a certain
number of heddles through which warp yarns are drawn. Harnesses are
raised and lowered to produce a particular woven design. There are three
general methods of shedding, each with specific design capabilitie.
Cam Shedding:
Cam shedding typically uses 6 to 8 harnesses, though sometimes up to 12. As
illustrated in, each harness is controlled by a rotating cam that forces the
connected harness to move up and down in a prescribed manner to produce a
particular fabric design. The profile or shape of each cam and its position on
the camshaft dictate the movement of the connected harness. With cam
shedding, designs are limited to basic weaves such as plain weave, simple twill
weaves, and common satin weaves.

Dobby Shedding:

Page No: 37
Dobby shedding typically uses 12 to 32 harnesses, which allows for a broader
range of woven designs than with cam shedding. In addition to the basic
weaves, dobby shedding makes it possible to weave small geometric figures,
spot weaves, and more complex pattern stripes. Many machines with dobby
shedding use plastic sheets with punched holes to direct the harnesses to be
lifted in a certain sequence to produce a given design. A punched hole allows a
pin to penetrate the sheet and initiate lifting of the associated harness. The
weave design is thus controlled by the positioning of the holes in the pattern
sheetshows a weaving machine using this type of dobby shedding.

Today, many weavers are investing in electronic dobby shedding machines

that work in a much simplified manner, with no punched sheets. Connected
with a computer-aided design system, these machines can quickly download
and weave a developed design.
electronic dobby shedding machine:

Jacquard Shedding:
Instead of using harnesses to control the weave design, Jacquard shedding
employs draw cords that drop down from a Jacquard head; each cord is
connected to an individual heddle or a small group of heddles. This type of
control makes it possible to form large design repeats and very intricate
designs. A given Jacquard machine will have a certain number of hooks that

Page No: 38
control the lifting of warp yarns. Having more hooks makes it possible to
weave larger design repeats and more intricate designs.

Filling Insertion:
The filling, or weft yarn, can be inserted into the woven fabric by various
methods. The oldest method, using a shuttle, has been replaced today by
various shuttleless methods, which include rapier, projectile, air jet, and water
jet filling insertion.

Shuttle Weaving:
Shuttles typically are inserted at the rate of 180 to 220 times per minute,
referred to as picks per minute. The shuttle contains a quill on which a small
amount of filling yarn is wound. The yarn unwinds from the quill as the
shuttle goes back and forth through the separated warp yarns. A fresh quill of
yarn is inserted just before the current quill is completely empty. Some shuttle
machines are still in operation, weaving vintage denim and specialty fabrics.
shows a shuttle with an empty quill inserted. The shuttle is tapered on each
end for easy entrance into and exit and out of the weave shed. shows a shuttle
machine manufactured in the late 1940s, with elements made
of iron, wood, and weather

weaving Shuttles shuttle Loom

Rapier Filling Insertion:

Rapiers are rigid bars or flexible tapes with an attached gripper system to grip
the yarn and insert it across the warp shed. The grippers typically are opened
and closed with the aid of cams or springs. Most rapier weaving machines use
a left-hand and a right-hand rapier. across the weave shed, where it meets the
other rapier (the taker), which enters the

Page No: 39
weave shed from the opposite direction, and the weft yarn is transferred from
the giver to the taker. Each rapier then retracts from the weave shed to
complete the process. The insertion process is typically repeated 350 to 600
times per minute, depending on machine width and model.
At least one manufacturer still produces single-rapier machines, which insert
the rapier across the complete width of the fabric and return it empty
beforeinsertion of the next weft yarn. This makes for a simpler operation and
requires less critical timing, because successive picks are not exchanged from
one rapier to another. Because rapier machines can insert a wide range of
yarn types, from steel wire yarns to all kinds of novelty yarns, rapier filling
insertion is the most flexible insertion method. Rigid rapier machines are
excellent for weaving rip-stop fabrics, in which several yarn sare inserted
simultaneously to help prevent the propagation of tears in the fabric. Rigid
rapier machines and the rounded pipe-like devices at the front of each
machine are where the rigid right-hand rapiers are recessed after leaving the
weave shed.

1. Rigid rapier machines with Jacquard shedding

2. Rigid rapier machine with selection of 12 weft yarns

3. Double rigid rapier machine

Page No: 40
Projectile Filling Insertion :
Projectile weaving machines contain a gripper that holds the filling yarn as the
projectile is shot across the weave shed. A torsion bar stores up energy as it is
twisted; when the energy is released, a connected lever strikes the projectile,
propelling the yarn across the machine. A given machine will contain several
projectiles, typically one per 10 inches of machine width. Projectiles are
returned to the picking side of the machine via a type of conveyor-belt system;
at any one time, several projectiles will be on the belt. Projectile filling
insertion machines typically run at 300 to 550 insertions per minute. With
fewer moving parts, they require less maintenance than rapier machines.
Double-width projectile machines can make two separate fabrics with the
same set of projectiles, thus doubling the speed of weaving. Projectile
machines can produce denim-weight fabrics, as well as shirting weight.
Projectile filling insertion:

Air Jet Filling Insertion:

Air jet weaving machines use a burst of compressed air from an air nozzle to
initially propel the filling yarn across the weave shed. Because the air
disperses very quickly, additional relay air nozzles are evenly spaced across

Page No: 41
the width of the weave shed to allow for weaving of wider fabrics. Air jet
machines use a special profile reed to create a tunnel configuration through
which the air and filling yarn travel across the weave shed. Air jet weaving
machines can insert relatively coarse yarns, such as yarns for heavy bottom-
weight denim; however, yarns any heavier than that would be difficult and
more costly to weave, because of the high air pressures required. These
machines can also weave finer spun yarns, but not ultra-fine yarns that might
be blown apart. Spun yarns and textured filament weft yarns run well on
these machines, but not slick flat filament yarns, because of their low surface
friction. Air jet machines have lower maintenance requirements and fewer
replacement parts than do rapier and projectile machines. Insertion rates
ranging from 600 to 1200 per minute are typical for air jet machines.
The layout of the main nozzle and relay nozzle :

Water Jet Filling Insertion:

In water jet weaving, only hydrophobic fibers and yarns can be used, such as
polyester, nylon, and olefin fibers. Most of the fabrics woven on these
machines are made of filament yarns, which are less absorbent than spun
yarns. A vacuum slot on the front of the machine front helps to remove any
residual water from the fabric. All machine parts must be made of
noncorrosive materials. Water jet weaving machines have insertionrates of
800 to 1200 picks per minute. The fabric most commonly made on water jet
machines is mattress ticking.

Page No: 42
 PRODUCTS OF SERICULTURE
 The main product in silk industry is the production of thread obtained
from the cocoons. In addition the silk industry can produce a number of
byproducts like -
1. Mulberry:
I. Neutraceutical compounds in leaves:
Tea made from mulberry leaves is popular in China, Japan and Korea; it
is beneficial for diabetic and hypertensive patients. DNJ, GBBA present
in mulberry leaves reduces glucose level and blood pressure.

II. Antioxidants in mulberry fruits:

Ripe mul•berry fruits are used to make jam, jelly, pickle and wine.

III. Fuel and compost making from mulberry:

 Mulberry waste wood is a good source of cellulose for paper and
chipboard industries.
 Mulberry shoots can be used as staking material for climbers of
vegetable, ornamental or fruit crops and mushroom cultivation.
 Hard woods from mulberry are used for mak•ing hockey sticks and
cricket bats.
 The fruits are edible; can also be used in the manufacture of alcoholic
drinks
 The stem in the trees is white in colour, soft and pliable. It is in great
demand in the manufacture of sports goods specially cricket bats. Many
agricultural implements can also be fashioned out of the stem. The
wood pulp of the stem is a good raw material for the manufacture of
quality paper.
 Mulberry leaves constitute a good cattle feed. It is known that this feed
increases the milk yield.

IV. Various parts of the plant body have a high medicianl value and are used
in the Ayurvedic system of medicine.

Page No: 43
 i. The fruit is aromatic, cooling, laxative, removes thirst and good in the
treatment of fevers.
ii. Bark is anthelmentic and purgative.
iii. Leaves in the form of decoction are used to gorgle in the treat•ment of
inflammation of the vocal cards.
iv. Roots are anthelmentic and astringent (acts as a binding agent) and
useful in the treatment of diahhroea.
v. There are four species of mulberry – Morus acedosa, M.alba, M. indica
and M. nigra. All these species are of medicinal value.

2. Silkworm Larva:
1. Products from silkworm faeces:
In China, chlorophyll, phytol, carotene, and pectin are extrac•ted from
silkworm faeces and used in food, che•mical and pharmaceutical industries.
2. Silkworm litter is also used as fodder and compost material

3. Pupa:
Oil extracted from silk moth pupa has numerous industrial applications like
manufacturing soaps. After oil extraction, oil cake can be used as moulding
material in bakelite industry. Silkworm pupa can also be used as feed for fowl,
fish and pig as it is rich in protein.
A fungus Cordyceps sinensis cultured on pupae/moths, by use of
recombinants have anti-tumour and anti-ageing properties.

4. Waste Silk:
Waste silk which cannot be reeled or spun is used to make silk film or silk
powder which is used as feed additive for cosmetic products. Sericin can be
used for the preparation of skin care items as it can provide excellent
protection against ultraviolet rays

5. Silk Moths:
Silk moths are used as feed for livestock. Moths are also used for preparation
of fungal medicine.

Page No: 44
Silk filaments obtained from the cocoon of the silk worm have been used for
textile production since sericulture was originally developed in china many
centuries ago.

6. Silk worm faces:

The excreta of silk worms find a number of uses. It can be used in the
production of vitamins (K and E), in the manufacture of acid resistant plastic
sheets etc. The faces is also a good organic manure and can be added to the
cattle dung to produce gobar gas. Manufacture of garlands – The remains of
the cocoon after the removal of silk threads can be fashioned into garlands.
These silk garlands are manufactured in Channapatna of Bangalore district.

Page No: 45
Advantages of sericulture
The following points highlight the top eight advantages of
sericulture. The advantages are:
1. High Employment Potential

2. Provides Vibrancy to Rural Economy

3. Low Gestation, High Returns

4. Women-friendly Occupation

5. Ideal Programme for the Weaker Section of the Society

6. Eco-Friendly Properties

7. Scope for Professional Training

8. Facilities for Seri-Culturists

1. High Employment Potential:

Only sericulture can generate vast employment. No other industry generates
this kind of employment. Hence, it is used as a tool for rural economic
reconstruction.

2. Provides Vibrancy to Rural Economy:

It is estimated that about 57% of the gross value of silk fabrics flow back
to cocoon growers, who in general are rural people with share of income
to different groups [56.8% to cocoon growers; 6.8% to the reelers, 9.1% to the
twisters; 10.7% to the weavers; 16.6% to the trade]. Thus, large amount
of income from silk industry goes back to villages from the cities.

3. Low Gestation, High Returns:

Land and rearing space) for mulberry cultivation and silkworm rearing
Investment of only Rs. 12,000 to Rs. 15,000 (excluding cost of in one acre of
irrigated land can generate net income levels up to Rs. 30,000/acre/ annum.

Page No: 46
Mulberry takes only six months to grow for starting silkworm rearing and once
planted it can support five crops in one year under tropical condition.
Depending on the management, rearing at least for 15 years can be continued
in the same land.

4. Women-friendly Occupation:
Different activities of sericulture starting from mulberry garden management,
leaf harvesting and silkworm rearing even reeling and weaving can effectively
be supported by women workers. In India, it has been found that over 60% of
sericulture employees constitutes the women folk.

5. Ideal Programme for the Weaker Section of the Society:

Low land holders even can start sericulture. Silkworm rearing in 3/4 acres of
mulberry garden can support a family of three without hiring labour.
Moreover, vast areas of tasar food plantation are available in different forests
of India; if judiciously exploited for rearing tasar silkworm, these can offer a
great supplementary employment to tribal Indians.

6. Eco-Friendly Properties:
 Soil preservation: Being perennial plant with green foliage, mulberry
contributes to soil preservation and provides vast green covers.

 Manures: Wastes from silk worm rearing can be recycled for mulberry
garden preparation as manures.

 Fuel source: Dried mulberry twigs and branches can be used as fuels by
the farmers, thus in turn can reduce the pressure on nearby vegetation
or forest.

 Pollution control: Being an agro-based industry, it requires minimum

use of fuel machinery, thus reduces air pollution.

 Integrated farming: With other plantations like flower, vegetables,

mulberry can be cultivated as intercrop, thus same land can be used for
various productions. 

 Uses of land: Besides cultivation lands, water shade areas, hill slopes,
vacant lands, etc. can also be used for the deep-rooted mulberry plants.

Page No: 47
7. Scope for Professional Training:
Sericulture departments of various states arrange for training on different
aspects of sericulture to the farmers with monthly stipend and field training.
At national level, the Central Silk Board (CSB) organises three kinds of
programmes. The first is open to all, the second to in-service personnel and
the third to the farmers. Short term courses. Intensive Training Programmes
are also organised by CSB from time to time. The International Centre for
Training and Research in Tropical Sericulture (ICTRETS), Mysore conducts
three courses on tropical sericulture at international level. In the vocational
scheme, sanctioned by UGC, students can take sericulture as their subject of
choice. Thus, sericulture is providing a wide scope for choosing profession to
all sorts of people in the society.

8. Facilities for Seri-Culturists:

Besides providing field and educational trainings, Regional Extension Centres
and Technical Service Centres of both State and Central Sericulture Boards
supply advanced-staged larvae to the rearers; rearing appliances and other
raw materials like mulberry samplings are supplied at nominal cost to the
rearers. Incentive bonus is offered to bivoltinerearers. Crop insurance
schemes have been offered specially to bivoltine farmers to protect against
any failure. In remote rural areas, farmers are supplied with pamphlets or
other essential details of methods of rearing, use of bed disinfectants,
insecticides, etc.

Page No: 48
 Disadvantages of sericulture:
1. Drawbacks: Sericulture must be done in closed premises; workers must
work in poorly ventilated premises. This creates respiratory problems for
these workers. Dead silkworms are handled by the workers with their bare
hands which leads to various diseases and infections.
2. Cost: Silk is a high-end fabric that can be expensive to produce, which can
drive up its cost for consumers.
3. Delicacy: Silk is a delicate fabric that requires special care to prevent
damage, such as hand-washing or dry-cleaning. Stains: Silk is prone to
staining and may be difficult to clean if spills or stains occur.
4. Time-consuming: Silkworm farming is a time-consuming process, requiring
close monitoring of the silkworms growth and development, as well as the
maintenance of their environment.
5. Disease prone: Silkworms are susceptible to various diseases, which can
cause significant losses and reduce profitability.
6. Depleting Water Table: Sericulture in India is practiced in select areas that
depend largely on rain. Hence, water resource for irrigation has been a
major concern and depleting water table is a big threat for the industry.
7. If the garment is worn, it wears out quickly and is highly susceptible to
damage from perspiration, salt, and tears; if stored away, it becomes brittle
and begins to shatter along lines of wear at an expedited rate.
8. Sericulture uses various techniques which can be harmful to farmers, one
by-product which is released during the rearing process is carbon monoxide
that can cause skin allergies, irritation and respiratory problems.
9. Silk protein itself has excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability, but
compared with its excellent biological properties, its mechanical properties
are often not ideal, with the disadvantages of low mechanical strength,
poor gel quality, low molding efficiency, insufficient water retention
performance, poor.
10. The disadvantage of silk fibroin is the high brittleness, which makes it
difficult to handle as a scaffold biomaterial, especially when implanted in
load-bearing sites [16,17]. In addition, some findings show that some

Page No: 49
 synthetic materials may decrease mechanical properties very early during
degradation [18,19].

11. During a process where cocoons are kept in hot water to loosen the silk
fibres. During this workers have to keep their hands directly into the water
to check the cocoons which will lead to secondary infection.
12. Workers have to work for longer periods of time, like 12-16 hours a day.
This will result is severe back pains and also in legs.
13. People who do not have proper knowledge will face difficulty in handling
the silkworms.
14.A major disadvantage is that the silk produced by a diseased silk worm can
be disastrous and can cause huge loss. When the cultivation is practiced of
this kind the fertility of soil is lost.
15. common problems faced by the Indian silk industry are – Price fluctuation,
Absence of proper market, Lack of transport facilities, Absence of storage
facilities, Poor information on market trend, Lack of finance, High cost of
production and low productivity, lack of technology penetration, prevalent
rural nature of the …
16. The pebrine disease can infect the eggs, resulting in their death before the
hatching of the larvae. Any larvae affected by this disease develop dark
spots and become lethargic. Viral infections in the larvae may result in the
shrinkage of their bodies.
17. Cost: On top of being one of the costlier fabrics, silk fabric is also costly to
maintain. Dry cleaning services are not very easy on the pocket and this
fabric requires special attention and care.
18. Sun Damage: Although silk fabric is pretty strong and durable, long
exposure to sun rays can cause the fibre to weaken.

Page No: 50
DISEASES OF SILKWORM / SILK MOTH
Diseases of silkworm are a big challenge for the rearers. Due to prolong
domestication, silkworm develops less immunity and less adaptability for
which they are often attacked by different agents. Although some attempt
has been made to develop disease resistant silkworm variety, but only a
limited success is obtained till date. In spite of taking many efforts on the
rearing environment, silkworms are vulnerable for infection of the
following agents or pathogens-
1. Protozoa
2. Bacteria
3. Viruses
4. Fungi

1. Protozoan Diseases
A) Pebrine-
This is one of the most virulent protozoan disease. The disease is caused by
protozoa- Nosema bombycis. NIK-2r, NIK-3h and NIK – 4m are the three
most virulent strain of this pathogen found in India. The protozoa complete
its life cycle through two stages- infective spore stage and vegetative stage.

Symptoms-
Symptoms exhibited by the different stages of life cycle of silkworms are:
Egg:-
1. Infected egg exhibit less attachment with the egg cards due to improper
deposition of glue.
2. Eggs turn pale yellow and may fail to hatch.
Larvae:-
Primarily infected larvae normally die before exhibiting any prominent
symptoms, while secondary and tertiary infected larvae shows symptoms
like loss of appetite, unequal body growth, clean worm symptom due to
irregular and incomplete moulting. Infected worm also shows some piper
like black spots on the body, irregular brown patches resulted due to dead
hypodermal cells, spitting or wasting of silk instead of spinning cocoon,
passing of soft faeces and generally die after spinning pupating .

Pupa –

Page No: 51
Live infected pupa if present inside cocoon or if they infected at the pupal
stage only they show black colour, swollen body with black spote on either
sides of the abdomen.
Adult moth:-
i) Infected adult moth show black spots on the abdomen, deformed
antennae, unstretched and discoloured wing.
ii) Adult female usually laid eggs in irregular loose heaps. Body scales
also fall off easily.
Mode of transmission:-
The disease is transmitted to silkworm in three different ways.
i) Oral- The leaves in the rearing bed normally get contaminated with the
spores liberated through the faeces of infected worms or dead larvae. So,
when such food is consume by healthy larvae, they get infected.
Contamination may also occur at the time of oviposition or after
oviposition.
ii) Direct contact- Infection may occur through the skin of larvae in the
rearing bed when contacted with the Nosema spores contained in the faecal
matter or dead tissues.
iii) Transovarial- when infection occurs in the 5th instar larvae the adult
moth immerges normally from the pupa. Under that situation the spores of
Nosema Sporulate within the oocyte and pass on to the egg. Thus the eggs
acquires infection from the mother and hatched into primary infected
larvae. However, most of these infected larvae grown up to 3rd instar only.
These larvae again act as the source of secondary infection through dead
larvae and contamination by faecal matter. Secondarily infected larvae
exhibit pebrine symptoms, unable to spin healthy cocoon and produce
tertiary infection to 5th instar larvae.

Detection of pebrine-
Disease can be detected by keen observation to the rearing bed, the
symptions and by microscopic observation of the homogenate, fluid from
the body and faecal pellets, where the presence of the spores of nosema can
be detected.Nowadays,by advance immune- enzymatic method presence of
pebrine spores can be detected quickly.

Control measure:

Page No: 52
Following techniques are adopted generally to get-rid of Pebrine:
1. Only disease free layings are allowed for rearing in the grainages.
2. If diseased larvae detected in the rearing bed they should be removed
immediately and burnt.
3. All rearing appliances including the rearing room should be dis infeted
with 4-5% formalin or bleaching powder. For rearing accessories instead
of routine formalin benomyl/ Bavistin/ Bengard etc. can be used.
4. Disease resistant races ( eg. Nistari) can be considered for rearing.

2. Bacterial Diseases
Most common bacterial diseases are
a) Bacterial Flacherie
Silkworm suffering from this disease exhibit diarrhea and vomiting. It is
caused by Bacillus bombycis, B.sotto, Streptococcus bombycis,
Pseudomonas aeroginosa etc.
Symptoms-
symptoms include:
i) Lack of eppetite. Diarrhoea and vomiting occur as common symptoms.
ii) Growth stunted and shrinkage of the body observed after moulting.
iii) Skin become loose and soft and exhibit sluggish movement.
iv) Body colour become dull to black-brown.
v) The larvae show signs of pain and convulsions and ultimately die.
vi) Body turns black and emits foul smell.

Mode of transmission

Page No: 53
i) Oral transmission- After taking contaminated leaves by the larvae from
the rearing bed bacterial growth occur in the gut of larva and consequent
deposition of lactate, acetate etc. reduces the gut permeability and lower
the pH and infection spreads all over the body of the larvae. Larvae release
stoolwithbacterialspores and then next set of infection starts.

ii) Rearing environment – Environmental physical factors like temperature

and humidity of the rearing room also plays a vital role in disease
transmission. Humid environment in the room may enhance the spreading
of Flacherie bacteria.Detection of flacherie bacteriaHistopathological
analysis of gut can detect the bacterial infection by the detection of
cylindrical or goblet and Diplococcus infection respectively. Control
measures:
1. Through maintaining optimum humidity and temperature in the
rearing room.
2. Providing healthy and disease free leaves to the rearing bed.
3.Disinfection of the rearing room and the rearing appliances with 2%
formalin should be done regularly.

b) Septicemia-
It occurs due to infection of haemolymph by bacteria. It mainly causes
by the infection of Bacillus, Streptococcus and Staphlococcus bacteria.
Transmission of the disease occur through intake of contaminated leaves
and wounds in the skin.
Symptoms-
i) Body exhibit softening.
ii) Body colour changes to brown.
iii) Larvae release liquid excreta.
iv) Loss of clasping power and death occurs frequently.

Control measure- Proper sanitation an hygiene should be maintain in the

rearing room. Infected larvae should be immediately removed from the bed
to prevent spreading of the disease. Handling of larvae should be done
carefully to reduce skin wounds.

c) Sotto-

Page No: 54
 This disease is caused by some bioinsecticidal bacteria. For eg, Bacillus
thuringiensis , which is widely use as a bioinsecticide release some
endotoxin thuricide. When the larva consume the toxin two types of affects
occur. In one type the larvae of B. mori stop feeding, haemolymph urn
alkaline and papalysis occurs within 60-80 minutes of intact. In another
type lepidopteran larva only show rapid inhibition of feeding.

Symptoms- Loss of appetite, sluggish movement, shrinkage of skin,

diarrhea, Loss of clasping power of prologs, Body turns black after death
and foul smell emit from the body.

Control measure- Cleaning of rearing room with hot water to inactive the
toxins, immediate removal of the infected or dead larvae for the rearing
bed, bacterial spores should be destroyed by exposing to 2% formaldehyde
for 3hrs or 1000C for 5minutes.

d) Court disease-In this bacterial disease the affected dead larvae turn
flaccid and the colour changes to crimson red. This disease is also
commonly known as Rrangi due to this formation of colour. Causative
bacteria- disease is caused by the infection of bacteria Serratia marcescans
and S.piscavotar following the primary infection with Streptococcus
faecalis . Infection occur through oral route or the skin wound.

Control measure- maintenance of the hygienic rearing room, removal of

dead or infected larvae, cleaning of appliances with 2% formaldehyde are
the measures for the diseases.

Page No: 55
3. Viral diseases

1.Grasserie-
Symptoms-Thisdiseaseischaracterized by the jaundice like symptoms
which are collectively known as Grasserie- orPolyhedrosis. Other
symptoms includes symptoms includes
i) Loss of appetite
ii) Formation of loose and shiny white skin with swellings in the
inter segmental zones.
iii) Release of milky white of yellowish fluid from the body containing
polyhedral.
iv) Infected larvae turn restless and do not undergo moulting.
v) Translucent cephalothorax and opaque mid gut observed due to
accumulation of polyhedral in the cytoplasm. Causative organism-
nuclear polyhedrosis of B. mori is caused by Nuclear Polyhedrosis Virus
strain Bm ( NPV Bm). This DNA virus multiplys only in the nucleus of the
host cell. the virus embedded in a proteinaceous mayrix called PIB
( Polyhedral Inclusion Bodies). In midut polyhedrosis , the RNA Smithia
virus form polyhedra in cytoplasm in case of midgut cytoplasmic
polyhedrosis or in nucleus in case of midgut nuclear plyhedrosis.
Mode of transmission
1. Orally through contaminated leave with PIB from dead larvae or their
2. excreta.
3. High temperature and Humidity may enhance the transmission of
latent stage of virus to virulent stage.
4. Blocking of spiracle by some agents like dust , exposure to formalin
etc. may
5. enhance the spreading of the disease.
6. Skin wound also enhance the disease.
7.
Control Measure

Page No: 56
 1. Maintenance of hygienic environment, proper ventilation in the
rearing room.
2. Sterilization of the rearing room with 2% formaldehyde or Bleaching
powder or Resham Keed Ouzhad (RKO) or Labex.
3. Immediate removal of dead or infected larvae from the rearing bed.
4. Oral administration of nalidixic acid, P- aminobutyric acid etc. or
topical application of imanine can control NPV to some extant.

b) Infectious Flascerie-
Infecious flasceri Virus(IFV) causes a type of flascerie of the silkworm,. This
virus enter to the body of animal through the oral route along with the
leaves. Vomiting and shrinkage of the body along with appearance of
transparent body are the symptom of this disease.
The disease can be control by the following measures :
1. Feeding the larvae with healthy and hygienic leaves.
2. Maintanence of proper hygiene of the rearing room.
3. Disinfection of rearing appliances with formalin.

c) Gattine- This disease is also known as Clear head disease as the ffacted
worm shows transparent, particularly the anterior part of the body.
Causative organism is primarily some virus while Streptococcus bombycis
act as the secondary agent. Loss of appetite and Supplying of proper
healthy leaves, hygiene in the rearing room and Disinfection of rearing
appliances are the measures to be taken for the controlling of the disease.

Page No: 57
4.Fungal diseases
a) Muscardine- In muscardine the body of the larvae get mummified due to
deposition of calcium oxalate . Hence the disease is also called as
‘calcino’.Symptoms includes- Sluggish movement of the larvae, loss of
appetite, vomiting , shrinkage of body with loose cuticle are observed.
Larvae infected at the early stage do not spin, but those infected late may
spin cocoon where the pupa die inside. Dead larvae generally covered with
the spores of the infected fungi or may be mummified with white powdery
material.Causative fungi is different muscardine. Depending on the colour
of theconidiospores name of muscardine is different.
Name of muscardine
1. White muscardine
2. Black muscardine
3. Yellow muscardine
4. Brown muscardine
5. Red muscardine

Causative fungi
Beauveria bassiana,
Metarrhizium arisopliae.
Poecilomyces farinosus
Aspergillus flavus and
A. oryzel Sorosporella uvella
Mode of transmission- All types of muscardine infection occurs through
contaminated leaves, through skin and spiracles. The fungal spores
germinate after falling on the silkworm skin and gradually penetrate the
cuticle by mechanical and enzymatic forces.
Control measures
1. Proper light, humidity and aeration should be maintained in the
rearing room. Any factors that may help the growth of fungi should
be avoided.
2. Temperature should be kept above 220C.
3. Infected larvae should be remove immediately and buried in a deep
pits.

Page No: 58
 4. For the preparation of bed 0.45 formalinised husk can be use for 1st
and 2nd instars, 0.5% for 2nd and 3rd instars. 0.6% for 4th instars
and 0.8% for for 5th instars.
5. During moulting after every cleaning operation dithane-M45and
kaoline can be applied to prevent the germination of fungal spores if
any.
6. For every 100layings, 3-4kg of Resham Keed Ouzhad (RKO) can be
spread after each moulting and 30 minutes before the larvae resume
feeding.
7. Laabex, a mixture of lime and bleaching powder has anti-muscardine
and grasserie effects, also improve larval growth.

Parasites of Silkworm
Uzi fly larvae:
Uzi fly deposit their eggs on the lepidopteran larvae. Two well known
Indian variety of this fly are Tricholyga bombycis and Exoristasorbillans.
Mode of transmission-
After 2-3 days of ovi position, the leg less maggot penetrates into the body
of the silkworm larvae by making a hole in the cuticle. The maggot then
consume the larval tissues and complete the instars and come out from the
body of the host for pupation. The host larvae dies in the process.
Symptoms-
Infected larvae shows black spots o the body, which are actually the entry
points of maggot. Larvae loss body weight due to loss of tissue. Exhibit
sluggish movement and stop feeding.

Control measure –

Page No: 59
 I. Uzinet( a nylon net of fine mesh) can be use to prevent the entry of
Uzi fly to the rearing room.
II. Uzicide or Vijeta can be spread on rearing tray to kill the uzi eggs
without hampering the normal growth of the silkworm larvae.
III. Reproductive potential of uzi fly can be prevented by introducing
radiation exposed sterile fly.
IV. Biological control can be applied by introducing natural predators
like spider in the field.
V. Uzi larvae and pupae found in the rearing room should be collected
and destroy by putting them into hot water.
Beetles, Ants and Straw mites also produce damage to the silkworm
industry.

Page No: 60
 Precauctions of sericulture

 No control measure for the disease has yet been evolved. The elimination

of diseased eggs during grainage by microscopic examination and diseased

larvae during rearing is the only preventive measures against the disease.

 Preventive measures can be taken in case of indoor operations of the

cultural process, but in outdoor rearing of muga worm, the infection may

come from extraneous sources.

 Follow the scientific inspection method of individual mother moth testing

for detection of pebrine in egg production.

 Practice disinfection of grainage appliances before and after every grainage

operation with 2% formalin.

 Ensure use of microscopically tested disease free disinfected eggs only.

 Practice surface sterilization of the eggs with 2% formalin for 5 minutes.

 Maintain hygienic conditions in egg production room and rearing sites.

 For basic stock maintenance, follow cellular method of rearing.

 Practice disinfection of rearing appliances before use.

 During rearing, test the faecal matters,

unequal/lethargic/unsettled/irregular moulters periodically. If pebrine

spores are detected, reject the entire infected crop.

Page No: 61
 Ensure the measures for destruction of diseased silkworm

larvae/cocoons/moths/eggs.

 Silkworms prefer a dry, cool, airy place. Keep their house away from direct

sunlight and clean it out daily removing droppings and old leaves as

Silkworms will suffocate if they are buried under rotting leaves. Placing a

sheet of newspaper on the bottom of their enclosure will make cleaning

much easier.

 Provide requisite spacing, good ventilation, good quality mulberry leaf,

Maintain the recommended temperature and humidity. Practice hygienic

measures during silkworm rearing. Identify and pick out infected larvae in

the early stages and ensure destruction of diseased silkworm

 Three precautions to be taken during sericulture are: - The eggs should be

stored below the temp 18°C for long term. - Clean and dry mulberry leaves

should be fed to larvae. - A few cocoon of good quality should be kept as

seed.

Page No: 62
 Rear silkworms under optimum temperature and humidity. Avoid injury to

the larvae. Apply recommended bed disinfectant as per schedule and

quantity. Feed Amruth as per schedule to control flacherie disease.

 Prune the Affected Branch – Silkworms won't kill off a branch, but

sometimes the easiest way to get rid of them is to prune the branch where

the nest is built. Use Insecticide – If your trees are being overrun by hungry

silkworms or you have a number of young saplings, it's time to consider

using insecticide.

 Disinfection of tools and appliances of the rearing house by 2% formaline is

essentially necessary to control the pebrine disease. But the measures

cannot be applied in case of outdoor of the disease can be minimized

except local occurrence.

Page No: 63
 People economics of sericulture:
1. Sericulture is an important labour intensive, agrobased industry providing
gainful employment to unemployed in the rural and semi-urban areas
and facilitates economic development and improvement in the standard of
life of the people.
2. Sericulture industry provides employment to approximately 8.7
million persons in rural and semi-urban areas in India.
3. The income generated with these values would be approximately
Rs. 28,000/- per year.
4. Developments were made in irrigation, crop-raising and breeding, building
and handicrafts. Trade and commerce also flourished, and the Silk Routes
became an increasingly important part of economic and cultural life, whilst
coinage from this time serves as an indication of the political structure of
the Kushan Empire.

Establishment Cost of Mulberry garden:

Mulberry plant has a bushy structure having life span of 15 years. Raising of
mulberry garden is the basic need for rearing of silk cocoon. Since, mulberry
garden and rearing ofcocoon are two aspects of silk production, proper care of
mulberry garden is very necessaryfor getting fresh, ample and continuous feed to
larvae in the form of mulberry leaves in orderto get fabulous silk cocoon
production and to earn greater profit. This refers to the cost involves in
establishing mulberry garden. It includes expenditure on different input uses
during establishment period of garden.

Establishment cost of rearing house:

This refers to the cost involved in establishing the rearing house. It includes the
expenditure on different equipment uses during the establishment of rearing
house. Rearing of silkworm is important to produce raw silk.In this process,
silkworms are reared atappropriate temperature and humidity to get silk threads
from cocoons. This rearing process is important to produce desirable quality of
cocoon.

Page No: 64
Maintenance Cost of Mulberry garden:

It includes the expenditure incurred on the inputs used for the maintenance of
mulberry garden. Maintenance cost starts after the establishment of mulberry
garden after six months.

Maintenance and rearing cost of silk cocoon:

Once the mulberry garden is established it is to be maintained every year, the

expenditure involved in this operation is treated as maintenance cost. Side by side
the DFLs are also to be needed to rear in rearing house for produced silk cocoon.
The silkworm rearing activities end up with the production of cocoons. This is
carried out as an indoor activity. Cocoon production in silk industry is the main
produce from which silk yarn is produced. Silk cocoon grower also earned income
from by-produce i.e. manure.

PROBLEMS FACED BY FARMERS IN PRODUCTION OF COCOON:

 Inadequate knowledge about improved method of rearing.

 High cost of establishment of rearing unit.
 Unavability of timely labour.
 Lack of market information.
 More transportation cost for transport of cocoon to distance market.

Page No: 65
Silk Samagra Scheme for Development of Sericulture:

Under the Central Sector Scheme Silk Samagra an Integrated Scheme for
Development of Silk Industry (ISDSI) implemented by Government of India
through Central Silk Board (CSB) with a total outlay of Rs. 2161.68 crore for
three years (2017-18 to 2019-20) for the overall development of silk industry
in the Country with an objective to scale up production by improving the
quality and productivity.
The scheme comprises four major components
(i) Research & Development, Training, Transfer of Technology and
Information Technology Initiatives.
(ii) Seed Organizations
(iii) Coordination and Market Development and
(iv) Quality Certification Systems (QCS) / Export Brand Promotion and
Technology Up-gradation.

1.Features of the Scheme

All the four major components of Silk Samagra are interlinked with each other
and aimed at a common goal.
The main objective of the scheme is to maintain Breeders stock, Breed
improvement through R&D Projects, Development of mechanized practices,
Technology translation through Sericulture Information Linkages and
Knowledge System (SILKS) Portal, Mobile Application for Stakeholders and for
seed quality monitoring, develop technology packages, impart training on
improved technology programmes to Stakeholders, and transfer technology to
the field through front line demonstration, produce Basic & Commercial Seed
of the improved Silkworm breeds developed by the Research Institutes,
encourage Private Partnership in Seed sector, and Maintain & Certify the
quality standards set by the R&D units for Silkworm Seed, Cocoon, Raw Silk
and Silk products covering the entire Silk value chain.

Major Interventions:
1. Research & Development:

Page No: 66
Race improvement through development of improved host plant varieties and
improved disease resistant Silkworm breeds through collaborative research
with reputed National Research organizations like IITs, CSIR, IISc and
International research institutes on Sericulture.

2. Seed organisation:
Seed production units will be strengthened to bring in quality standards in
production network, besides increasing the production capacity to cater to the
increased silk production target, promote adopted seed rearers to generate
quality seed cocoons, Private Graineurs to produce quality seed and Chawki
Rearing Centres (CRCs) with Incubation facilities to produce and supply
chawki worms,

3. Quality Certification /Brand Promotion:

Promote Indian silk through quality certification by Silk Mark not only in the
domestic market but also in the Export market. Besides, emphasis has been
given for use of Silkworm by-products (pupa) for Poultry feed, Sericin for
Cosmetic Applications and Product Diversification into non-woven fabrics,
Silk Denim, Silk Knit etc. for value addition.

The scheme also comprises of various beneficiary oriented components to

support Mulberry, Vanya and Post Cocoon Sectors.
These interventions cover the major areas
(a) Development and expansion of host plant,
(b) Strengthening and creation of Silkworm seed Multiplication
infrastructure,
(c) Development of farm and post-cocoon infrastructure,
(d) Up-gradation of reeling and processing technologies in Silk, and
(e) Capacity Building through Skill development / Enterprise Development
Programme.

The above scheme interventions are expected to increase /improve the

production and productivity of silk.

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The details of expected outcome of the scheme are as under:
● Increase the Silk production from the level of 30,348 MTs (Metric
Tonne) during 2016-17 to 38,500 MTs by end of 2019-20,
● Increase the production of Bivoltine Import Substitute Silk to 8500 MTs
from 5266 MTs in 2016-17
● Increasing Vanya Raw Silk production to 11,500 MTs from 9075 in
2016-17 MTs.
● To produce International Grade Silk of 4A and above to minimize the
import to bare minimum.
● To generate additional employment to about 15 lakh person by reaching
100 lakh persons by end of March,2020 from the level of 85.10 lakh
persons in 2016-17.
● 82562 villages under 455 districts in 26 silk producing states have been
covered under the scheme “Silk Samagra”.
The details of funds sanctioned/ allocated and utilized under “Silk Samagra”
scheme during the years 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20 in the country.

Sericulture is an agro-based cottage industry having huge employment and

income generating potential in rural and semi-urban areas. It is estimated that
sericulture industry provides employment to approximately 91.20 lakh
persons (including 3.40 lakh persons in the State of Tamil Nadu) in rural and
semi-urban areas in the country as of March-2019. Of these, a sizeable number
of workers belong to the economically weaker sections of society, including
women. This is mainly due to implementation of Government schemes and
efforts made by State/ Central Government.

The main aim of “Silk Samagra” Scheme is to empower downtrodden, poor &
backward tribal families through various activities of sericulture in the
country including women. Women constitute over 60% of those employed in
down-stream activities of sericulture like mulberry garden management, leaf
harvesting and silkworm rearing etc. Even silk reeling industry including
weaving is largely supported by them.
An average of 30% women beneficiaries are being covered under the “Silk
Samagra”. Women SHGs are involved in implementation of various beneficiary

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oriented components under “Silk Samagra” specially group activities. Through
beneficiary oriented components of the scheme, support has been extended
under Tribal Sub Plan (TSP) to take up sericulture activities by tribal for their
livelihood. The scheme as employment provider tool improved the living
standards and economic conditions of the downtrodden, poor, backward &
tribal families by supporting to take up various sericulture activities for their
livelihood.

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Silk production
 The raw silk production in India amounted to about 35 thousand metric
tons in fiscal year 2022, an increase from the previous fiscal year.

Top Silk Producing States in India

 Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Assam are the top three silk-producing
states in India.
 This article will throw light on the top silk-producing states of India and
cover some interesting facts related to sericulture.

Silk Producing States of India:

The top 10 silk-producing states of India are listed below:

● Karnataka

● Andhra Pradesh

● Assam

● Tamil Nadu

● Meghalaya

● Jharkhand

● Manipur

● West Bengal

● Maharashtra

● Chhattisgarh.

Silk Production Centres of States:

There are important silk production centres in different states, which are given
below:

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Karnataka:

 The important silk production centres of Karnataka are Kollegal, Melkote,

Molakalmuru, Ilkal, Anekal, and Bengaluru.

Andhra Pradesh:

 The important silk production centres of Andhra Pradesh are located in

Dharmavaram, Pochampalli, Venkatagiri, and Narayanpet.

Assam:

 Sualkuchi is the main silk production centre in Assam.

Tamil Nadu:

 The important silk production centres of Tamil Nadu are Kumbakonam,

Thanjavur, Kanchipuram, Arni, and Salem.

West Bengal:

 Birbhum, Murshidabad, and Bishnupur are the silk production centres in

the state of West Bengal.

Chhattisgarh:

 Raigarh, Chanderi, and Champa are the important silk production centres
in Chhattisgarh.

Silk Production Centres in the Other States:

The important silk production centres in other states are given below:

 In Bihar, the important silk production centre is located in Bhagalpur.

 In Gujarat, the silk production centres are located in Cambay and Surat.
 In Uttar Pradesh, the silk production centre is located in Varanasi.
 Paithan is the silk production centre in Maharashtra.
 In Jammu & Kashmir, the silk production centre is located in Srinagar.

Sericulture in India:
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  Karnataka is the highest producer of silk in India. The important silk
production centres of Karnataka are Kollegal, Melkote, Molakalmuru, Ilkal,
Anekal, and Bangalore.
 Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, and Uttar Pradesh are
some of the states of India which are famous for producing silk. In Uttar
Pradesh, Varanasi is famous for its silk. In Tamil Nadu, Kanchipuram is
famous for its silk.
 China is the world’s largest producer of silk. India is the second-largest
producer of silk in the world.
 Assam is the largest producer of Muga silk.
 The best all-season natural silks of India are Mulberry silk, Banarasi silk,
Muga silk, Chanderi Silk, Baluchari Silk, etc.

Silk production in India:

 India is the only country where all types of silks are produced main of them
being
 mulberry, tropical Tasar, Oak Tasar, Eri and Muga.
 Out of which much is known for its unique yellow glitter and is a
prerogative to India. In India, mulberry sericulture is the major component,
and it is practised in the five states, namely Andhra Pradesh, Assam,
Karnataka, and West Bengal, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu.
 Northeast region is the only unique that produces four varieties of silk
which are Mulberry, Oak Tasar, Muga and Eri.
 India’s total silk production out of which 18% is contributed by the
northeast region.
 India is the second-largest producer of silk in the world.

Graph of the silk production:

Volume of raw silk production in India from 2014 to 2022

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Page No: 73
 Conclusion
India is the unique country of the world where all 4 varieties of silk namely
mulberry, muga, tasar and eri are produced. Sericulture has been identified as an
occupation of low investiment, employment creating and income generating.
Favourable climatic conditions and participation of large number of women in
sericulture industry will lead the development of silk industry to a greater height.

Sericulture offers self-employment opportunities to educated unemployed youth

in different sectors. Many by-products can also be produced from sericulture
activities. Moreover, Mulberry and silkworm have pharmaceutical values in the
world.

Thus it is concluded that silk a lustrous, precious natural fibre is popular for its
highest position among all fibres as Queen of fibres and requires careful
processing so as not to affect its feel and appearance.

Page No: 74
TOPIC NAME REFRENCES
1. INTRODUCTION OF SERICULTURE SH.S.D.PATERIYA

2. HISTORY OF SERICULTURE FROM INTERNET

3. TYPES OF SILK AND SILKWORMS FROM INTERNET

4. LIFE CYCLE OF SILKWORM NEHA DHYANI

5. MORICULTURE VEDANTU

6. PROCESS OF SERICULTURE

A) HARVESTING MR.YOGESH, V.GIRI

B) COCOON DRYING FROM INTERNET

C) COCOON BOILING/ COOKING H.B.MAHESHA

D) REELING TEXTILU COMMITTE

E) SPINNING FROM INTERNET

F) TWISTING FROM INTERNET

G) WEAVING MICHEL SIMDT

7. PRODUCTS OF SERICULTURE FROM INTERNET

8. ADVANTAGES OF SERICULTURE TIPPU SULTAN

9. DISADVANTAGES OF SERICULTURE FROM INTERNET

10. DISEASES IN SERICULTURE FROM INTERNET

11. GOVERNMENT SCHEMES PIB (PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU)

12. PEOPLE ECONOMICS IN SERICULTURE FROM INTERNET

13. PRODUCTIONS OF SERICULTURE BYJUS

14. PREVENTIONS IN SERICULTURE FROM INTERNET

15. CONCLUSION FROM INTERNET

 THANK YOU

This book will gives a clear information on concept of

Sericulture.
 We are very thankful to my principal Dr. Sr. Prema
Kumari to built confidence in us and encouraged us
in making this book.
 We also thankful to my mentor S. Lakshmi Tulasi
madam to guided us a lot and provided us an idea on
making this book on Sericulture.
 Finally we are very thankful to my mentor
Dr. G. Adiseshu madam to supported my work and
helped us to move in the right way.
THANK
YOU
 ST. ANN’S COLLEGE FOR WOMEN
ANDHRA PRADESH, VISAKHAPATNAM
MALKAPURAM - 530011