Mysuru: A mega silk cluster which is expected to boost sericulture industry in this region will come up near the city soon. The cluster, which is expected to house facilities from post-cocoon stage to fabric manufacturing and sale, will come up on 11 acres at Belavadi in Yelwala hobli on the outskirts of Mysuru. The cluster would be set up under a public-private partnership.
Minister for Higher Education G T Deve Gowda who is also the District In-Charge said that project would come up at a cost of Rs. 49 crore. He said that the facility would serve as an extension centre for silk marketing and would create a number of jobs.The cluster would enable the weavers to produce quality silk saris in an abundant quantity, he said.
He also said that the Union Government would bear 60 per cent of the total cost while the State government would bear 30 per cent and remaining 10 per cent would be borne by the entrepreneurs.
The mega silk cluster would offer state-of-the-art infrastructure to reelers, weavers and other stakeholders in the sericulture industry. It is based on the guidelines of the comprehensive power loom cluster development scheme of the Government of India. The common facility proposed to be created at the cluster includes silk-twisting, fabric dying, common effluent treatment plant, among others.
Saris, fabrics, and other finished products made out of silk will be produced at the cluster in Belawadi, which also houses the 87-year-old Weaving and Printing factory of the Karnataka Silk Industries Corporation (KSIC).