Jharkhand Silk Textile & Handicrafts Development Corporation (Jharcraft) has been taking exemplary measures to boost silk growth in the state due to which the silk production has more than doubled in 2012-13.

Jharcraft's first emporium was launched in September 2007 at Roshpa Tower in Ranchi. There has been no looking back since then. Silk production has jumped to 1,025 metric tonnes (mt) in 2012-13 from 90 mt in 2006.

Dhirendra Kumar, MD of Jharcraft, said that its target for 2012-13 was only 425 mt but production zoomed past even national target. ... we far exceeded the target, producing 1,025 mt of silk in 2012-13. It was two-and-a-half times more than the national target. Turnover of Jharcraft has touched Rs 80 crore from zilch in just five years (from 2007 to 2012).

Jharcraft's first showroom outside the state was set up in Delhi in 2008. The turnover of the store in the first year was more than Rs 1 crore. Since then it has seen an increase of 20%-25% year on year.

At present, there are two emporiums of Jharcraft in Delhi and a third is expected to be started soon. Jharcraft also has one emporium each in other metro cities like Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai. Also, there are emporiums in other cities like Varanasi, Pune, Mysore and Ahmedabad. In Bihar, apart from the existing showroom of Jharcraft in Kankarbagh, Patna and in Bhagalpur, a franchise is going to be opened shortly on Boring Road in Patna. Kumar said. An emporium is to be started in Mussoorie shortly. They are in talks to start emporiums in Jaipur and Lucknow as well.

Jharcraft will also be moving down south with Kerala as its first stop. They already have a showroom in Thrissur and are planning new emporiums in Kottayam, Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram and Madurai, said Kumar.

Jharcraft also signed an agreement with Shoppers Stop, the national departmental stores chain in 2013. As per the agreement, the products of Jharcraft will be displayed at the stores of Shoppers Stop across the state. Currently, they are displaying their products in five stores of Shoppers Stop in Mumbai, Vadodara, Bhopal, Raipur and Chennai on a trial basis and will be expanding to other cities as well.

The Kuchai Silk Expo organized by Jharcraft in various cities has also become quite popular. In 2013, the expo was organized in Kolkata, Ranchi, Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai. It raked in a turnover of more than Rs 10 crore. Kumar said, Encouraged by the overwhelming response, we are planning to organize expos in 10 cities this year.

Jharcraft was established in 2006 with the objective of boosting silk production and supporting sericulturists, weavers and artisans. The organization implemented government-funded schemes to promote tasar, handloom and handicrafts in the state.