Jute is an indigenous plant of India. It is grown as a commercial crop in the north-eastern parts of the country. It provides cheap and durable fiber which is used as raw material in jute industry for the manufacture of gunny bags, carpets, hessian, ropes and strings, rugs, clothes, tarpaulins and upholstery etc. Jute goods form an essential item of the country’s export.
Two important varieties, i.e., Corchorus capsularis (white jute) and Corchorus olitorius (tossa jute) are cultivated in India. The former accounts for 75 per cent of the total area of jute in the country.
Conditions of Growth
Jute is a tropical plant which requires hot and humid climate. Average annual temperature between 24°C and 35°C which hardly falls below 15°C is best suited. The annual rainfall should range from 125 cm to 200 cm. Occasional showers with 2 cm to 3 cm of weekly rainfall are most beneficial for the crop.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
The relative humidity should be around 90%. Incessant and untimely rains and prolonged drought are harmful. Light sandy or clayey loams which are enriched regularly by fresh deposits of silt during floods are well suited to the crop. Jute growing area is mainly confined to the deltaic tracts of the Ganga- Brahmaputra. The crop requires plentiful supply of cheap labour and large quantity of water for retting, washing and removal of fiber.
Cultivation
Jute is a Kharif crop sown from February to June and harvested from July to October. It takes about 8-10 months for the crop to mature. Yields are generally higher in the crop sown during winter season. Seeds are sown either through broadcast or put in shallow furrows. Sowing through drills in line is becoming more popular in recent years.
When plants attain the height of 2-4 m and are mature these | are cut, bundled and put in ponds for retting. After 20 to 25 days the bark is peeled from the plant by hand and fibre is then removed from the pith. It is then rinsed, washed, dried and pressed into bales.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
Yield
The average per hectare yield of jute was 2182 kg per hectare in 2001-02 which shows an increase of 109.2 per cent between 1950-51 and 2001-02 (annual rate being 2.14 per cent). This is due to the introduction of HYV like JRC-2I2, JRC- 321, JRC-7447, and JRC-4444. UPC-94, JRO-632, JRO- 524, JRO-620, JRO-753, JRO-878. JRO-7835 and TJ-40 etc. On state wise basis highest per hectare yield was obtained in Orissa (2760 kg/ha) followed by West Bengal, Tripura, Assam. Meghalaya and Bihar.