Jaalo Yadav : Weaving A Different Fabric
Making use of the fallow land to rear tasar cocoons and working hard to make this livelihood option a viable one proves to be one of the best decisions that Jaalo Yadav ever took, increasing the family income, steadily inching him forward to self sufficiency and earning him the reputation of a successful and well-informed farmer
J AALO YADAV LIVES IN SMALL VILLAGE NAMED Bhorsar in the forest area of Katoria block, Banka district, Bihar. He lives in a joint family with his parents, four brothers, three sisters and their families. His elder brother studied up to matriculation and was the only sibling who had had access to education. The rest of them, including Jaalo, were illiterate because the family could not afford to educate the children. Despite this, Jaalo has acquired the reputation of being one of the best farmers of tasar in the region and this activity has brought many changes in his social and economic life. His story was documented in 2014, towards the end of the Special Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY) Project on Tasar, implemented by PRADAN, in collaboration with the Central Silk Board (CSB).
Tasar rearing was practised in the traditional way. Due to the lack resources and knowledge, the income was very low. Jaalo went all the way to Giridhi to purchase cocoons from which he prepared seeds on his own. However, because of the limited facilities, he was not able to produce Disease Free Layings (DFLs) so he had to rear unchecked seeds.
The Struggle to Make Two Ends Meet
About 15 years ago, Jaalo and his family lived in a very small house. The family had 15 acres of land, of which only 1.5 bighas was fertile. The lack of irrigation facilities was the main reason for the limited productivity. They had only one well, the water of which was used for drinking and, to some extent, for irrigation. The crops they grew were dependent on rain. The productive land was used to cultivate paddy, kurthi, and potato crops, providing food for the family for five months of the year. For the remaining seven months, the main sources of income of the family were rearing of tasar cocoons in the forest and migration to the cities for work. The rearing of cattle, and the harvesting and sale of mahua flowers and seeds provided some additional income.