Photo Courtesy: nenews
Guwahati: Eight indigenous Karbi women recently finished a four-day training course on mechanized Eri silk reeling. The program ran from September 30 to October 3 at the Community Resource Centre in Chandrasing Rongpi village, located in the Rongmongve Block of Karbi Anglong. Environmental group Aaranyak organized the event to help locals turn the tradition of Ahimsa silk into a viable business. They want to preserve old customs while creating sustainable rural micro-enterprises.
Experts Mirbon Teronpi and Madhuri Teronpi from Diphu led the instruction. They taught the women how to prepare cocoons, operate reeling machines, and maintain yarn quality. The group also studied product pricing and costing to help them enter the market. SELCO Foundation provided solar-powered reeling machines for the workshop. Aaranyak ran the event as part of its Natural Resource Management Programme, which receives backing from IUCN-KfW.
Traditional hand reeling is slow and physically demanding. It often leads to inconsistent yarn quality. Participants Kache Rongpipi of Bakring Engti village and Kaku Rongpipi of Khailun Terang village attended the sessions. Kache Rongpipi noted her progress during the program. "We now feel more confident about machine reeling and considering Eri for livelihood," she said.
Project Officer Joshna Terangpi coordinated the effort alongside Field Volunteer Presila Terangpi. Other participants included Margrath Terangpi and Anjona Rongpharpi. Joshna Terangpi emphasized the need to save the endangered craft. "This endangered, climate-friendly textile practice needs timely intervention to survive," she said. The team believes this shift will strengthen both the local economy and biodiversity conservation.
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