Land Productivity, Artisanal Efficiency & Income Generation in Artisanal Silk Industry of West Bengal

Sericulture, being low capital intensive with low gestation period and assured returns, suits a vast marginal class including landless farmers and low-skilled artisans, whose voices are not heard in the so called fast growing world. This paper will focus on some pertinent regional issues of land productivity and technical efficiency of these marginal classes and will measure their plausible impact on income generation from the artisanal silk sector of West Bengal. Analysing the nation wide data set, the paper finds the area of mulberry cultivation and price of reeling cocoons as significant influencing variables. However, primary survey on Malda district of West Bengal exposes that mandays creation for the this avocation and technical efficiency are two significant factors which are significantly enhancing the income flow produced by the sericulture household while cost of implants has a serious detrimental impact on revenue generation by the silk artisans in West Bengal.