SERICUL TURE AND THE PROCESS OF CHANGE - Institute for ...

their children from the schools, on the last days of rearing, when the
worms start spinning. However, this tendency soon disappears as they
gain experience and expand their social networks and interactions. It
takes a positive turn as they improve their standard of living in the
process of successful sericulture crops over the years. Most children
going to the English medium schools in these villages are from
sericulture families, who have improved their living status with the help
of sericulture. The educated youths, in rural areas, who show least
interest in farm activities and generally look for greener pastures in
urban centres, show greater inclination towards sericulture. Sericulture
has created a new health consciousness and a sense of cleanliness among
the sericulturists. In many households, the intervention of supernatural
elements in the performance of activities like sericulture is highly
believed. This is true especially of those sericulturists who are left with
fewer resources in high risky situations like sericulture. Some of the
sericulturists tend to rationalise the traditional beliefs like lizard killing.
There are some sericulturists who discard some beliefs after due
experimentation. One such belief relates to purity and pollution.
Sericulture plays a positive role in moulding the personality of
the individual participants. It also facilitates the individual rearers to
develop a broad and progressive outlook in life. This is sometimes
reflected in their interaction with the Scheduled castes as well as in the
gender approaches. It has provided opportunities to put into test some of
the abilities of the individuals in the process of rearing. One of the areas
of opportunities in sericulture that has contributed in moulding the
personality of individuals is the social and network relations at the wider
level.
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