Студенты зоологического факультета в Керале запустили стартап по производству шелка

From growing mulberry plants and rearing silkworms to harvesting cocoons — and eventually weaving silk sarees — students of the Zoology Department at Vimala College in Thrissur, Keralam, are spinning an unusual entrepreneurial dream. The students have launched ‘V-Weave’, a sericulture campus start-up that aims to take them through the fascinating journey from the farm to the loom. The initiative, launched by the Zoology Department, has already marked a major milestone with its first silk cocoon harvest. Students have been cultivating mulberry and rearing silkworms at the college’s off-campus facility at Padukkad, producing silk cocoons and opening what the college describes as a new chapter in campus-based entrepreneurship. With the initiative, Vimala College has also earned the distinction of becoming the first college campus in the State to undertake silkworm rearing and silk cocoon production, according to Prof Feeba Rani John, Head of the Department of Zoology. Calling for the development of a “silk economy” in Keralam, Chandy Oommen MLA, who recently launched the V-Weave and the first silk cocoon harvest on the college campus, said sericulture had the potential to emerge as an important source of entrepreneurship and employment. “Kerala needs a silk economy. Sericulture initiatives capable of contributing to the State’s economy should emerge from our campuses. Sericulture and the silk industry have enormous relevance in the self-employment sector,” he said. Silk economy A strong silk economy could encompass the entire value chain — from mulberry cultivation and silkworm rearing to yarn production, weaving, design, branding, marketing and exports. Other colleges should take inspiration from this initiative, he said, adding that an integrated mission similar to a Silk Economy Mission, centred on colleges across the State, should be explored. The college hopes that V-Weave will eventually take students beyond cocoon production and into the world of silk weaving. “Our aim is to take students from the campus into the silk saree industry and make them self-reliant. The initiative will also help nurture entrepreneurial awareness among students,” said Principal Prof. Sister Beena Jose. The organisers say V-Weave is the first sericulture campus start-up in the country to have emerged from a group of zoology students. The students have cultivated V1 variety mulberry and used double hybrid silkworm laying for the first cocoon harvest. “Our ultimate goal is to create a campus-branded Kerala silk saree,” said Prof. Feeba Rani John, the architect of the V-Weave start-up. The project has been launched with the support and cooperation of the Central Silk Board, the Silk Mark Organisation of India and the Keralam government’s Poverty Alleviation Department, she said. The initiative is expected to offer students a hands-on understanding of the complete silk production chain while opening up possibilities in entrepreneurship, sustainable agriculture and value-added production. For the zoology students of Vimala College, the journey has just begun — from tiny silkworms and fragile cocoons to what they hope will one day become a distinctive Keralam silk saree woven out of a campus dream.