Introduction
India is the second-largest producer of silk in the world. As of FY25, the country’s sericulture industry employs around 9.76 million people in rural and semi-urban areas. The industry is one of the largest foreign exchange earners in the country. The sericulture activities in India are spread across 52,500 villages. India produces four types of natural silks: Mulberry, Eri, Tasar, and Muga. The country produces silk garments, made-ups, fabrics, yarns, carpets, shawls, scarves, cushion covers, and accessories through the raw material.
In FY25, India produced 41,121 metric tons (MT) of silk, whereas during FY24 38,913 MT silk was produced. The share of mulberry production is the largest among other types of silk produced in the country. The major silk-producing states in the country are Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.
Export Trend
India exports raw silk, natural silk yarn, fabrics & made-ups, readymade garments, silk waste and handloom products of silk. In FY25, India’s exports of silk and silk products stood at US$ 246 million. During FY26 (April-July), the exports of silk and silk products stood at US$ 108 million. Product-wise split for the exports for FY26 (April-July) was as follows - natural silk yarn exports were US$ 68 million, silk readymade garments exports were US$ 26 million, Raw silk were US$ 2.89 million, silk waste exports were US$ 13 million and silk carpet export were US$ 16 million.
The natural silk yarn, fabrics, and made ups, and silk readymade garments were the most exported silk products from India during FY26 (April-July) with exports share of 55.1%, and 21%, respectively.
The share of other products in India’s total silk exports were as follows – silk waste (12.24%), raw silk (0.13%) and silk carpet (13.19%). India enjoys a unique global position in terms of production and exports of all the commercially useful varieties of silk and the government has initiated various trade shows and fairs in order to promote the exports of silk products across the world.
Export Destinations
India’s silk and silk products are in high demand throughout the world. The country exports to more than 30 countries in the world. Some of the top importers were the UAE, USA, China, UK, Italy, Singapore, Australia, France, Hong Kong, and Canada during FY26 (April-July).
The UAE was the top importer of silk products from India with a share of 49.07% as of FY26 (April-July). The China was the second largest importer of Indian silk after the UAE, with a share of 11.11%. These countries were followed by USA, Singapore, France, Italy which had 10.2%, 3.23%, 3.23%, and 3.23% of the total exports share, respectively.
Natural silk yarn, fabrics, and made ups exported to UAE held a share of 82.26% of the total exported products.
Silk carpets constituted 14.52% and silk readymade garments constituted 3.23% of the total exported products to UAE. Silk waste was the majorly exported to China with a share of 92% of the total exported products.
Government Initiatives
For the development and growth of the silk industry in India, the government has implemented several research & development, training, transfer of technology and IT initiatives. The focus is to develop new technologies, train a larger workforce, provide education, and enhance connectivity between scientists, experts, and developers. In addition to these, there are various schemes such as the Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP) and Silk Samagra and Scheduled Caste Sub-Plan (SCSP) are implemented for the development of the industry.
Silk Samagra
Silk Samagra was an Integrated Scheme for Development of Silk Industry (ISDSI) which the Government of India introduced through the Central Silk Board (CSB). This scheme had a total outlay of Rs. 2,161.68 crore (US$ 272.8 million) for 3 years (2017-18 to 2019-20) and was aimed at the complete development of the silk industry in India. This scheme will aid in scaling silk production by improving quality and productivity.
Sericulture Development in the North-Eastern States (NERTPS)
The Government of India had launched the sericulture development scheme within an umbrella scheme, namely “North-East Region Textile Promotion scheme”. The objective of this scheme was the revival, expansion, and diversification of sericulture in the state with a special focus on Eri and Muga silks.
Governing Body
The Indian Silk Export Promotion Council (ISEPC)
Sponsored by the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, the ISEPC is an apex body of the exporters, manufacturers and merchandisers. The main activities of the council are to explore markets, establish contacts with potential buyers, organize buyer-seller meets, silk fairs, and exhibitions, resolve trade disputes, and promote and develop the Indian silk industry and exports.
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