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The three new hybrids. A boon to sericulturists.

HYDERABAD, July 16

THREE new silkworm hybrids which hold promise of providing consistent cocoon yield and superior quality international grade silk have been developed by the Andhra Pradesh State Sericulture Research and Development Institute (APSSRDI) of Hindupur in collaboration with the Hyderabad-based Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD).

The three hybrids, Swarnandhra, Kalpatharuvu and Hemavathy, have also been registered with the Patent Corporation Treaty, Geneva for patenting and protecting the breeders' rights at the global level.

While Swarnandhra is a multi-voltine hybrid, Kalpatharuvu and Hemavathy are bivoltine hybrids.

The CDFD Director, Dr S. E. Hasnain, told newspersons on Tuesday that this was the first successful attempt to produce international grade silk from the multi-voltine crossed bivoltine hybrid. Rearing of the new silkworm hybrids would now place India at the competitive level in the global silk market.

According to the APSSDRI Director, Dr Chandrashekhariah, the hybrids, suitable to tropical conditions, were developed in a span of four years by adopting a combination of conventional selection and hybridisation and DNA marker technologies. The latter were used by the CDFD Scientist, Dr J. Nagaraju, and the hybrids were selected on the basis of DNA profile based genetic distance.

After testing the hybrids in 25 locations in different sericulture pockets of India, both the State-level and national-level Silkworm Race Authorisation Committees authorised commercialisation of the new hybrids.

Sericulturists have found that cocoon productivity per acre in case of Swarnandhra has increased to 530 kg as against 450 kg in traditional hybrid. The silk of this hybrid is also of international 2A grade and its cocoons fetch up to Rs 50 per kg more when compared to the existing hybrids. The cocoons of Kalpatharuvu and Hemavathy hybrids will also produce international 3A grade silk and fetch up to Rs 180 per kg as against Rs 130 per kg of traditional hybrid cocoons.

The Andhra Pradesh Commissioner of Sericulture, Mr I. Venkateswarlu, said by using the new hybrids and adopting modern methods of sericulture, the farmers of Nakkanapalli and Muddulavanka villages have been able to increase their earnings from Rs 40,000 to Rs 1.2 lakhs per acre.

The two villages in Kuppam mandal of Chittoor district have been adopted by the State Department of Sericulture (DOS) as the "new millennium's model silk villages". DOS had so far created 49 such model silk villages in the State and targeted to have 100 such villages by the end of the Tenth Plan.

Mr Venkateswarlu said an NRI, Mr V.P. Rao, had come forward to set up two modern silk reeling units at Kuppam and Hindupur at a cost of Rs 35 crore. The two 100 per cent EOUs were meant for exporting the new hybrids.

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