Guwahati, June 16: Traditional craft of weaving comes naturally to the most of the indigenous Bodo women in the biodiversity rich Bodolant Territorial Region (BTR) of Assam. The famed Manas landscape is intricate embedded to the region.
The BTR hosts three of the eight spectacular national parks in Indian state of Assam – Manas national Park (a UNESCO World Heritage Site ), Raimona National Park and Sikhna Jwhwlao National Park.
This speaks volume of rich biodiversity in the Bodoland area of Assam and the cotributions of the local communities towards conservation of bio-resources in these protected areas.
With the objective to elicit sustained cooperation from the indigenous communities including Bodo tribe for conservation of biodiversity in the famous Manas National Park landscape as well as the rest of the BTC, a collaborative initiative called ‘THREAD’ has been launched by North East India’s premier biodiversity conservation organisation Aaranyak, WWF-India and Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group (GEAG) to enhance skills of indigenous women weavers to empower them economically through a sustainable livelihood of weaving.
Assistant Director of Aaranyak’s Community Livelihood Division (CLD) Manas Bhattarcharjya has been coordinating the implementation of the THREAD project in BTR of Assam along with Aaranyak’s Deputy Executive Director Dr Bibhuti Prasad Lahkar and Deputy Director in Rhino Research and Conservation Division Dr Deba Kumar Dutta especially in Manas landscape and Udalguri district of Assam.
He informed that the project aimed to enhance skill and economically empower over 400 women weavers from 16 villages from Manas National Park Landscape and three other villages from Udalguri district of Assam.
The project focused on providing advanced training on weaving, weaving equipment, raw materials and constant updating of weavers on market-friendly designs,
The Common Facility Centre (CFC) for weavers at Mazrabari village near Bhuyanpara Range of the sprawling Manas National Park (MNP) is a model to showcase the project implementation. Eleven weavers have been engaged in this CFC under the expert supervision of Master Trainer Nandeswar Deka, Textile Exert Arjun Hazarika, designer Darshna Boro.
Cluster Development Executives Raj Kumar Daimary and Anjima Daimary have been working as a thread between the community weavers, the project administration and the market, in Manas Landscape and Udalguri district, respectively. Project coordinator Swapan Kumar Das has been the pivot all along.
The model CFC is equipped with modern handloom equipment including Jacquard looms, spinning machines etc. where the women artisans at this moment are weaving sublime products including Assamese Gamochas, Bodo tribe Gamochas, cotton Saris, cotton stoles with attractive motifs for which the THREAD project is facilitating marketing too.
One of the weavers at the CFC Babita Das said, “It has been a very enriching experience to work in the well-equipped CFC which has enhanced our skills as weavers besides providing a regular income that has improved economic condition of our individual families. I want this CFC to flourish for long so that more traditional weavers like us get the opportunity to enhance their skills here.”
Master Trainer Nandeswar Deka agreed to her saying that by working in the well-equipped ambience in the CFC at Mazrabari, the women weavers has been fast learning new designs besides enhancing their skills.
Manas Kumar Bhattacharjya informed that the CFC has remained the core for implementation of the THREAD project in the landscape besides the participation of women weavers from the local villages.
— Bijay Sankar Bora
