The shahtoosh shawl trade has been banned in Jammu and Kashmir in accordance with wildlife protection policies. Shahtoosh shawls are made from the down fur of endangered Tibetan antelopes, whose population has sharply declined from around 1 million to less than 75,000 due to hunting for their fur. Animal rights and environmental groups have welcomed the ban to help protect the antelopes, though it will significantly reduce state revenues from the lucrative shawl trade.

1. The scientific work for invention of cheap imitation of Natural silk may be in
progress, but in the market place there are numerous other textile materials sold
in the name of silk i.e. Art silk, Artificial silk and other glamorous names. Please
watch out, Silk Mark is here to help you to identify Silk - the Pure Silk! The
Consumer of Silk has long been having a difficulty of identifying the pure silk
from the host of other fibers, just like the Consumer of Gold in finding the
purity of Gold. The Consumers and the genuine traders of silk had been
demanding a measure from Central Silk Board in bringing in a fair practice in
the Trade. Silk Mark was launched on 17th June 2004 as a response to the
demand. Silk Mark is being promoted by Silk Mark Organisation of India
(SMOI), a registered society under Karnataka Society Act 1960. SMOI is an
initiative of Central Silk Board, Ministry of Textiles and Government of India.

2. Certifying agency Silk Mark Organisation of India Effective since 2004
Product category Silk textile Legal status Advisory Website
silkmarkindia.com Silk Mark is a certification mark in India for silk textiles.
The mark certifies that the piece of textile which bears the mark is made of
pure natural silk. The certification is managed by the 'Silk Mark
Organisation of India', a society setup by the state controlled Central Silk
Board of India.[1] Even though promoted by the government of India, the
mark is only advisory in nature and is not legally endorsed. The certification
scheme was founded by the Central Silk Board in 2004.In the original format,
the mark included a silk mark logo woven on a hang-on tag on which a
unique numbered hologram would be affixed. But the hang-on tag tended to

3. Silk Mark Organization of India (SMOI), a registered society, sponsored by the
Central Silk Board, Ministry of Textiles, Govt. of India, had launched, SILK
Mark, a label certifying that the product is made up of quality silk material.
This will protect the interests of the consumers and will play a multi-
dimensional role in the overall promotion of Indian silk both in the domestic
and export markets. Silk manufacturers, Wholesalers, Retailers and exporters of
repute, who fulfill certain minimum standards in their raw materials, supply
chains and sourcing of finished or semi-finished products can become an
Authorised User (AU) of Silk Mark. They would be allowed to use the Silk
Mark Logo in the products containing 100% natural silk. Silk Mark would be a
symbol of silk purity. It would be a hallmark for products made from pure and
new silk. It will be prominently displayed and affixed to products.

4. It is a certification mark that specifies
that a product contains pure, new wool
and is recognized throughout the
world as a symbol of quality and
reliability. This quality standard for
woolen products is prescribed by the
International Wool Secretariat.

5. Shahtoosh (also written Shahtush, a Persian word meaning "king of fine
wools") is the name given to a specific kind of shawl, which is woven with
the down hair of the Tibetan Antelope (Chiru), by the weavers of
Kashmir.The Chiru antelope live in one of the harshest environments on
earth, at an altitude of over 5,000 metres. Their special type of down fur,
which is both very light and warm, allows them to survive in the freezing
conditions of the plateau where they gather at one point of the year. They are
migratory animals - moving down from Mongolia to Tibet- and traditionally
followed closely by the nomads who also make that journey every year. The
nomads would hunt the antelope for all that it provided them - hide, meat,
bones, horns and fur pelts - in short, everything that the nomads needed to
sustain them through their journey.t is a long-perpetuated false claim, that
nomads gathered Chiru down from rocks and bushes, after it was naturally
shed.

6. History
When the British (of British India) traveled to Kashmir in Summer, they
realised the worth of Pashmina and shahtoosh shawls and introduced them to
the world, which led to greater demand for these products. Subsequently, the
antelope was hunted down specifically for its fur, and their numbers have
dropped accordingly from nearly a million (estimated) at the turn of the 20th
century to less than 75,000 today. The numbers continue to drop yearly. This
led to the antelope now being listed as an endangered species and given the
highest possible level of legal protection, where by no commercial trade in
shahtoosh is permitted. The selling or owning of shahtoosh was made illegal in
all countries that signed the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species. Many countries including the USA, China and India are cracking
down on those involved in the shahtoosh trade. Although shahtoosh is banned
under the agreement, illegal hunting and selling of shahtoosh is still a serious
problem in Tibet.

7. Jul 31, 2000
in accordance with the central government's policy on wildlife protection the
Jammu and Kashmir government has banned the shahtoosh shawl trade. The
trade is posing a threat to the existence of the Tibetan antelope.
Economically, the ban will result in a huge revenue loss for the state, as each
shahtoosh shawl sells for Rs 1,00,000 and above. The state had so far been
resisting the ban on the pretext that thousands of families are depended on
the trade for their living. The government said that the wool was not
obtained by killing the antelope, but by collecting tufts left behind by the
antelope while passing through bushes. We will request the Centre to
provide a one-time exception for sale of shahtoosh stocks available with the
traders," says state chief minister Farooq Abdullah. The state government is
now planning to promote pashmina shawls in a big way and a trade
exhibition was held in Paris for this purpose.

8. Jul 31, 2000
in accordance with the central government's policy on wildlife protection the
Jammu and Kashmir government has banned the shahtoosh shawl trade. The
trade is posing a threat to the existence of the Tibetan antelope.
Economically, the ban will result in a huge revenue loss for the state, as each
shahtoosh shawl sells for Rs 1,00,000 and above. The state had so far been
resisting the ban on the pretext that thousands of families are depended on
the trade for their living. The government said that the wool was not
obtained by killing the antelope, but by collecting tufts left behind by the
antelope while passing through bushes. We will request the Centre to
provide a one-time exception for sale of shahtoosh stocks available with the
traders," says state chief minister Farooq Abdullah. The state government is
now planning to promote pashmina shawls in a big way and a trade
exhibition was held in Paris for this purpose.

9. The chiru antelope live in one of the harshest
environments on earth, at an altitude of over 5,000
metres. Their special type of down fur, which is
both very light and warm, allows them to survive in
the freezing conditions of the plateau where they
gather at one point of the year. They are migratory
animals - moving down from Mongolia to Tibet -
and traditionally followed closely by the nomads,
who also make that journey every year. The nomads
would hunt the antelope for all that it provided
them - hide, meat, bones, horns and fur pelts - in
short, everything that the nomads needed to sustain
them through their journey.

10. MUMBAI: Animal rights activists, environmentalists and naturalists have
welcomed the ban passed last week on the manufacture of shahtoosh shawls
in Jammu and Kashmir, the only place where these internationally sought-
after shawls are woven. The shawls are made from the wool of the Tibetan
antelope or chiru, an endangered species that has been slaughtered for its
fleece in huge numbers in recent years. The fleece is smuggled from Tibet
into Kashmir, where women weave it into gossamer-thin shawls weighing
less than 150 grams that are warm enough to ward off sub-zero temperatures.
"The hard-won ban on shahtoosh manufacture will give a new lease of life to
the Tibetan antelope,'' Isaac Kehimkar of the Bombay Natural History
Society said on behalf of the scientists at the organisation. "Nearly 20,000
chiru are killed annually, according to official Chinese estimates. And less
than 75,000 animals remain today. So this ban has come not a moment too
soon.'‘ It has, in fact, come after ten years of vigorous international lobbying
and two court cases in the Jammu high court by wildlife groups that include

11. A woman wearing a shahtoosh shawl. Shahtoosh is used to make shawls and scarves.
In India, jail time is one possible consequence for possessing a shahtoosh shawl.
Shahtoosh is the most expensive wool in the world and is used to make articles of
clothing such as shawls and scarves. It is extremely lightweight and soft, yet is
surprisingly warm. The fibers are extremely thin — approximately six times thinner
than the size of a human hair. Generally, the wool comes from Tibetan antelope fur,
specifically the very fine undercoat; the animal is also known as the Chiru. The name
is a Persian word that translates as "king of wools." Given the delicate nature of the
fur, it takes an extremely talented artisan to work with this fabric, making these
shawls quite valuable and precious. The shawls typically are made in Kashmir, which
is a state in India. Historically, shahtoosh shawls were used as dowry items in India;
however, the latter half of the 20th century saw this fabric become a must-have item
in worldwide fashion. Their popularity continued to grow, and the shawls were in
high demand. The Chiru, whose fur was used for these shawls, began to be hunted
excessively, and the animal soon ended up on the endangered species list. More than
160 countries signed the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species,
making killing, harming, or trading the Chiru illegal throughout the world since 1979.