Karnataka Chief Minister Urges Centre to Restore Custom Duty on Silk Imports at 30%

Karnataka Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda has urged the Cengtre to restore custom duty on silk products at 30 per cent to save the silk industry in the State and the agony of a large number of farmers and sericulture stakeholdeRs.

The duty has been slashed from 30 per cent to 5 per cent in the 2011-12 Union Budget.

In a letter dated November 21, the Chief Minister urged Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to immediately restore customs duty to its earlier rate of 30 per cent and come to the aid of sericulture farmers and the reeleRs.

"Once the farmers remove all the mulberry plantations, huge investments made in the XI plan both by the Centre and state governments will go in vain and sericulture, which is contributing to a great extent to provide for the livelihood of several farmers will reduce considerably," the chief minister said.

The State Government provided a package of Rs 30 a kg cocoons on equal sharing basis with the central silk board for addressing the distress sale when the cocoons prices go below Rs 160 a kg.

"Though we made serious efforts, farmers are not getting convinced and are on the continuous strike from November 14 onwards in front of our cocoon markets" Gowda said.

The average cocoon prices crashed from Rs 312 a kg in February 2011 to Rs 177 a kg in October, 2011 while the average price of raw silk has declined from Rs 2707 per kg to Rs 1892 a kg during the same period.

"Once the prices of cocoons and raw silk came down, there will be uprooting of mulberry in the sericulture bet in Karnataka which will result in drastic reduction in raw silk production. Mulberry is a perennial plant with a shelf life of 40 yeaRs If the plant is uprooted, it will take years to motivate farmers to take the plantation again," the chief minister said.

Reduction in customs duty has affected the livelihood of farmers and relelers severely, and in the process, the country would face critical shortage of raw silk, Gowda said.