IIT Bombay develops humane silk technique without killing silkworms, backed by Coal India CSR

New Delhi: IIT Bombay's Centre for Technology Alternatives for Rural Areas has developed a silk production method that spares silkworms' lives, supported by Coal India under its CSR initiative.

The three-year pilot project, named 'Jeevodaya', trains silkworms feeding on mulberry leaves to lay silk threads on flat surfaces instead of forming cocoons, allowing them to transform into moths and complete their natural life cycle.

Unlike traditional methods where cocoons are boiled to extract silk, killing millions of worms, the new 'Jeevodaya Silk' technique embodies compassion, drawing from the ancient Indian ethos 'Ma kaschit dukha bhag bhavet' -- may no one suffer.

"Jeevodaya, a unique and pathbreaking silk production pilot project of IIT Bombay, supported by Coal India under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, has achieved a significant breakthrough after three years of continuous research and development," Coal India Ltd (CIL) said in a statement.

Coal India played a key role in funding the research from concept to fruition, with the project now poised for wider adoption to boost sustainable income for sericulture farmers and rural livelihoods, it added.