Plants used for basketry in Kasaragod District, Kerala

Keywords:
Koraga, Basketry, Plants, Threats, Conservation.
ABSTRACT:



Basketry is the traditional occupation of Koragas, one of the most primitive
tribes, living along the Kerala-Karnataka border. They make use of a number of plants
to weave baskets of different name, size and shape. At present both baskets and their
creators are facing the threat of extinction owing to changing socio-economic trends.
The paper lists out 29 species of plants used by the Koraga for weaving baskets, which
may pave the way for conservation of both plants and the traditional craft.

153-159 | JRPS | 2012 | Vol 1 | No 2

This article is governed by the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/
licenses/by/2.0), which gives permission for unrestricted use, non-commercial, distribution and
reproduction in all medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

www.plantsciences.info
Journal of Research in
Plant Sciences
An International Scientific
Research Journal
Authors:
Subrahmanya Prasad K
and Raveendran K.


Institution:
Department of Post
Graduate Studies and
Research in Botany, Sir Syed
College, Taliparamba,
Kannur - 670 142, Kerala,
India.


Corresponding author:
Subrahmanya Prasad K.


Email:
prasadks.1090@rediffmail.com














Web Address:
http://www.plantsciences.info
documents/PS0038.pdf.


Dates:
Received: 06 Oct 2012 Accepted: 03 Dec 2012 Published: 31 Dec 2012
Article Citation:
Subrahmanya Prasad K and Raveendran K.
Plants used for basketry in Kasaragod District, Kerala.
Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 153-159
Original Research
Journal of Research in Plant Sciences
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An International Scientific Research Journal


INTRODUCTION
Kerala is the home land of 36 communities
listed in the scheduled tribes list. Out of 75 primitive
tribal groups (PTGs) categorized by Government
of India, in Kerala, there are five PTGs namely Koraga,
Cholanaikkan, Kurumbar, Kadar and Kattunayakan
(Kakkoth, 2005). The Koraga populations live in
43 settlements amidst rural population of Kasaragod
District while their major stalk lives in the adjoining
Karnataka State. Their population according to
1961, 1971, 1981, 1991 census (Anonymous, 1991)
socio-economic survey of 1996-97 (Anonymous, 2002)
and KIRTADS action plan survey (Anonymous, 1999)
was 548, 724, 1098, 1651, 1349 and 1330 respectively.
In earlier days they were treated as untouchables even
by scheduled castes (Vasudevan, 1998) and are so
backward that no other tribe was in a more primitive
stage than the Koraga (Aiyappan, 1948). They speak a
script less language close to Tulu and Kannada. The
economy of the Koraga is based on basketry, they are
experts in basketry and almost 70% members of the
community still subsist on basketry (Kakkoth, 2005),
while the rest resorted to agriculture labour, laterite stone
cutting, beedi rolling and wage labour. Majority of the
Koraga are skilful in the manufacture of cradles, baskets,
cylinders to hold paddy, winnowing and sowing baskets,
scale-pans, boxes, rice water strainers, ring stands for
supporting pots, coir rope and brushes for washing cattle
(Mohanty, 2004).
Basket weaving is an art or craft which needs
much expertise. Baskets are of different kinds, known by
several names with respect to their shape, size and use,
viz. Thadpe-a flat basket used to clean paddy seeds
(winnowing baskets), Gobbaratha Kantya-large basket
used to transfer manure, Manna Kantya-medium
sized basket for collection and transfer of soil,
Galakuruve-to collect arecanut, Kaikkuruve-small
basket, Kalasige-basket used to measure amount of
grains and many more. These baskets were made up of
thin slices of different plant parts which are woven in an
artistic manner into desired shape and size, held tightly
by means of cordage of plant origin. At present due to
rapid urbanization and industrialization, the tradition of
basketry is being wiped out and may not survive the
process of modernization. The present paper aims to
document and thus to conserve this less known
communitys traditional knowledge and their dependence
on natural resources, which may pave the way for
protection of both the Koraga and their craft.

METHODOLOGY
A total of 23 field trips were carried out to the
different Koraga settlements spread along
Kerala- Karnataka border. During these visits 27 Koraga
people were interviewed, of which 8 were experts,
consisting of 6 men and 2 women, all are above sixty
except one. For interview data sheets and questionnaires
were used. Data regarding the different plants used for
basketry, their properties, uses and other information
were collected. The data collected was confirmed from
other sources and compared with the existing literature
(Shetty et al., 2002; Shanmugam et al., 2012). The
collected voucher specimens were made into herbarium
sheets and deposited at the SSC herbaria for future use.
These were identified with the help of regional floras
(Hooker, 1872 - 1897; Gamble and Fischer, 1915 - 1936;
Manilal and Sivarajan, 1982; Mathew, 1983;
Ramachandran and Nair, 1988; Bhat, 2003; Anil Kumar
et al., 2005).

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Every day, the Koraga people collect the suitable
plant material from the forest in quantities needed for the
preparation of two or three baskets. These are brought to
the weaving place. At first, the plant materials were split
into two from the centre, then into thin slices of even
thickness using sharp knives (Figures 1 and 2). The
spines, outer bark, warts are removed during slicing.
Prasad and Raveendran, 2012
154 Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 153-159

Prasad and Raveendran, 2012
Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 153-159 155
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Relatively broader slices, with a length of about 1.5 m
are used to weave the bottom (Figures 3-5). Other longer
slices (3-4 m long) are woven circularly in such a way
that these are interior to one slice while exterior to the
next (Figures 6-8). This process is continued until the
desired shape and size is achieved (Figures 9-12).
The suitable plant materials are the climbers
or scandent shrubs due to their flexibility. Majority of
the plant materials are used after splitting and
removal of outer skin. Narrow climbing stems
of Loeseneriella arnottiana (Wight) A. C. Sm and
Uvaria narum (Dunal) Well. ex Wight. are used as such.
Baskets prepared from Calycopteris floribunda (Roxb.)
Lam. are of great demand due to their quality
and durability. Agave americana L. leaf and
Caryota urens L. leaf sheath are soaked in water for a
month, taken out and crushed to separate the fibre.
Baskets made up of Calycopteris floribunda (Roxb.)
Lam. and Acacia spp. are soaked in water for a week to
remove their bitter substance and to increase their
durability. Different plants used for basket making, their
local name, family, habit, morphology of useful part are
listed in Table-1.
From the present study, it is evident that the
Koraga people use 29 species of plants belonging to
22 genera and 16 families for basket making, of which
19 are either climbers or scandent shrubs. Stem of 25
plants are used to weave baskets while leaf fibres of 4
plants are used to bind tightly the woven slices. Use of
Bambusa bambos L. Voss., Borassus flabellifer L.,
Corypha umbraculifera L., Ochlandra scriptoria
(Dennst.) C. E. C. Fischer and Ochlandra travancorica
Benth. ex. Gamble in basket making were reported
earlier (Shetty et al., 2002; Shanmugam et al., 2012).
Bougainvillea spp. and Gliricidia sepium (Jacq.) Kunth
ex Walp. are of recent introduction, as tribal people use
these due to shortage of suitable plant material. Barks of
Acacia spp. are having cleansing property (Pawar and
Sonawale, 2011) while that of Ziziphus spp. are credited
Prasad and Raveendran, 2012
156 Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 153-159
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Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 153-159 157
Prasad and Raveendran, 2012
Figure 1 Plant materials Figure 2 Preparation of thin slices
Figure 3 Thin slices
Figure 4 Thin slices ready for weaving Figure 5 Initial stage of weaving Figure 6 Weaving of basket
Figure 7 Weaving of thin slices Figure 8 Weaving at the final stage Figure 9 Preparation of handle
Figure 10 Handle Figure11 Finished product
(Gobbaratha Kantya)
Figure 12 Finished product
(Manna Kantya)


with antiseptic properties (Paulsamy, 2011). Of the
29 plants 24 are well known for their healing properties
(Jain, 1991; Udayan and Balachandran, 2009), thus
imparting medicinal value, insect and pest repellent
properties to the baskets weaved from them.

CONCLUSION
When compared with modern plastic or fibre
baskets, these traditional baskets are easy to handle,
durable, biodegradable and ecofriendly. Due to shortage
of plant materials and difficulty in marketing, the
younger generations of Koraga community are fleeing
away from their traditional craft of basket weaving,
towards other seemingly prestigious jobs, leaving it in
hands of a few old. Thus the stark reality is that both
Koraga tribe and their craft is facing fear of extinction of
their unique culture and identity.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Authors are indebted to the tribal people,
especially Aitha, Babu, Batya, Chaniya, Chaniyaru,
Manku and Sundara for their generous support during
the field survey. We also thank the Principal and
Management, Sir Syed College, Taliparamba for their
encouragement and support. First author is grateful to
KSCSTE for financial assistance.

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Prasad and Raveendran, 2012
Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 153-159 159
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