The Muga Mission

It augurs well that Meghalaya is going the muga (silk) way. On Tuesday, the State saw the launch of a Meghalaya Muga Mission in Shillong, with models in muga attire stealing the show. Speaking at the function held at the State Convention Centre in the city, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma rightly said the entire Northeast as a whole has a rich history and culture attached to muga and the identity of the region as a silk-producing province goes back by centuries. He said that with the launch of the mission, muga production in the State would receive the much-needed leverage and direction with funding close to Rs 130 crore from multiple sources over a period of five years. But there is a need for oriented marketing to accomplish the goal as stated. Branding is a major issue, and it is here that experts in the field need to be roped in. Sangma seems to be aware of this; he has underlined the need to embark on a “massive branding exercise” for the marketing of the indigenous silk as well as other locally produced goods to make them all a unique proposition to buyers not just in the country but also abroad. This is possible. The intent of the Sangma government, on the other hand, to roll out an online platform – MeghaMart, on the lines of Amazon – to facilitate the sale and purchase of products sourced from local entrepreneurs is an addition to the Muga Mission in the right direction. After all, one of the components of a knowledge society is societal transformation along with wealth generation and knowledge protection. Local entrepreneurship, along with protection of local knowledge pertaining to such enterprises as muga, therefore, needs a fillip. Nonetheless, this is just a beginning. Utmost care should be taken when it comes to the menace of middlemen in the perpetual business of deceit, lies and loot.