The authorities call it a small yet a serious effort to revive what was once known as the scenic Valley’s glittering and money-spinning silk industry. Kumar said that at present the factory produces one lakh metre of silk yarn.Some officials attribute the decline to de-monopolisation of the industry and its subsequent bifurcation into Kashmir filatures and sericulture department.Jammu and Kashmir’s sericulture industry is of very old origin.“The people are once again showing a lot of interest and because of it the situation is changing for the better, gradually though,” he said.5 million kilogrammes a year. But unfortunately this factory remained shut for more than 28 years.Shailendra Kumar, principal secretary, industries and commerce, said, “Silk in Kashmir had had its own glory.
The mulberry silk of Kashmir, the weaves popularly known as chinon and crepe de chine, were considered as some of the fine qualities produced from the silk yarn anywhere and this would be exported only to Europe in good old days. We have reopened it.Cocoon production dropped to 60,000 kilogrammes a year and in 1989 just before the start of insurgency in the Valley, Resham Khana was shut due to decreased production and huge losses.Officials said that a World Bank aid of Rs 12 crore, besides support from the central silk board helped in bringing Kashmir’s silk industry back to life.Nearly three decades later, the authorities are making an all out effort to revive the industry.Ghulam Muhammad Butt, the in-charge of Kashmir filature, is quite happy that Resham Khana is back on the rails. In the 1980s, the cocoon production in Kashmir had reached more than 1.But then the business witnessed a downfall and in 1989, one of the world’s the oldest and largest silk factories situated in China Drop-in Bathtubs suppliers Srinagar’s Solina area and locally known by its Urdu variant Resham Khana had to be shut. But few years later, the industry started witnessing a downtrend..Mr. With that, thousands of artisans and other workers and cocoon farmers were virtually rendered jobless. “
There are about 40,000 cocoon rearers’ families in Kashmir. “We are planning to take it to one million metres annually in next two years,” he said. In 1940s, the precious silk yarn produced in Kashmir was exported to entire Europe and Srinagar’s Resham Khana had become one of the best and famed silk producing factories in the world. The rearing of silkworms on mulberry trees for the production of raw silk is known as sericulture. The cocoon farmers too started picking up the pieces again. Resham Khana reopened and started production again more than a year ago. Everyone is happy.”Resham Khana, the state’s oldest silk factory, was set up in 1897 by Dogra ruler Maharaja Pratap Singh with the help of Sir Thomas Wardle, president of the Silk Association of Great Britain.Srinagar: The endeavour to restore Kashmir’s pristine glory began about a year ago and a little of it has already gone a long way. It is the main source of livelihood for them.In 1889, a separate department for sericulture was created in the State with the main aim of promoting its silk industry. I suppose it may have been mainly the lack of requisite attention by both the government and private sector that led to its collapse.”He added that now lot of interest is being shown by the stakeholders towards reviving the industry.