ABSTRACT
Policies and programmes promoting wild and tropical silk or Tasar-based livelihoods have galvanised income gains for indigenous forest-dwelling communities, but there is limited evidence that these strategies are sustainable. Our study of successful Tasar-based interventions indicates that the introduction of an ecorace risks unintended perverse consequences, unless Tasar development retains the ecological diversity of the system. In the context of Tasar silkworms, “ecorace” refers to distinct populations of the worm that are adapted to specific geographical regions and environmental conditions. This entails a shift in perspectives and practices from the insect tree interaction to the species and the fulfilment of its ecological requirements.
This chapter examines governmental and non-governmental organisation (NGO) interventions to increase Tasar production over the past 30 years. A detailed analysis demonstrates how this approach, while yielding short-term production gains, has ultimately been counterproductive by neglecting ecological concerns. Though there are short-term production gains by the introduction of ecoraces, long-term risks include the extinction of indigenous ecoraces, thinning of forests, and loss of genetic vigour of the introduced ecorace.
To illustrate these dynamics, a case study of interventions spanning 30 years, by the NGO Professional Assistance for Development Action (PRADAN) in collaboration with the Central Silk Board in the Santhal Parganas of Jharkhand, India's highest Tasar-producing state, with the largest variety of ecoraces, is examined. The case study highlights the displacement of the indigenous Sarihan ecorace to alternate habitats. A review of the literature survey indicates these interventions in three waves, starting from the 1860s. Driven by concerns for increasing reliability of production, the interventions involved repeated introduction of the only semi-domesticated ecorace, Daba, through systematic seed-replacement programmes.
