Shillong, Feb 12: The Chief Minister of Meghalaya, Conrad Sangma announced that the village of Umden-Diwon was declared as the state’s first Eri Silk Village.
He further added that this came as a recognition of the overall collective and unique achievements and initiative of the community, to inspire weavers & spinners & enable it to further develop into a vibrant “AtmaNirbhar village.”
The Chief Minister took to Twitter to make the announcement. He wrote, “Today, Umden-Diwon village is declared as #Meghalaya’s 1st #EriSilkVillage, in recognition of the overall collective & unique achievements & initiative of the community, to inspire weavers & spinners & enable it to further develop into a vibrant #AtmaNirbhar village.”
In collaboration with National Institute of Fashion Technology, a Design Resource Centre will also be set up to provide unique branding and identity to the village by depicting the speciality of the region, in terms of colour, motif, usage and looms.
“What sets Umden-Diwon Eri Silk Village of Meghalaya apart from the silk communities like San Kamphaeng silk village of Thailand, Van Phuk silk village of Vietnam, Takeo silk village of Cambodia or the Saulkuchi silk village of Assam, is the striking unique features found in the EriPeace Silk popularly known as the Ahimsa Silk,” the statement said, adding that the entire production process is done entirely within the community.
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Umden-Diwon has emerged as the epicentre of Eri culture in the state, with over 70 per cent of full-time active weavers. The village has made a name for itself for their ‘Ahimsa Peace Silk’.
The ‘Ahimsa’ silk is processed from cocoons without killing the larvae inside, besides inherent thermal properties which makes it feel cool in summers and warm in winters.
Another added attraction is that the Eri Silk fabrics, locally known as the Ryndia, are exclusively hand-woven with organic and natural dyes.
