After three years of sustained research and development, IIT Bombay’s innovative pilot project ‘Jeevodaya’ has achieved a significant milestone in ethical silk production. The project is being supported through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funding from Coal India Limited, the holding company of Northern Coalfields Limited (NCL). Under this initiative, IIT Bombay’s Centre for Technology Alternatives for Rural Areas (CTARA) has successfully developed a novel, non-violent silk production technique that does not require the killing of silkworms. Unlike conventional methods, the new process allows silkworms to complete their natural life cycle, transforming into moths after producing silk threads. Reflecting its humane and ethical foundation, the silk has been named ‘Jeevodaya Silk’. Traditionally, silkworms raised on mulberry leaves form cocoons, which are then boiled to extract silk, resulting in the death of millions of silkworms.

 

The Jeevodaya project challenges this age-old practice by redefining silk production through compassion-driven scientific innovation. After extensive experimentation, CTARA researchers achieved a rare scientific breakthrough by training silkworms to spin silk threads on flat surfaces instead of forming cocoons. As a result, the worms are no longer required to build cocoons and are eventually released as moths. Coal India played a crucial role in supporting the project from concept to successful implementation through continuous CSR assistance. Beyond its ethical and environmental significance, the technology offers a new and sustainable source of income for silk farmers, strengthening rural livelihoods. With the success of the Jeevodaya pilot project, the initiative holds strong potential for large-scale adoption and for promoting sustainable and ethical silk production across the country.