Widow shows the way with yarn, clothes from pineapple leaves

By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Dec 7 : Meet this 41-year-old woman entrepreneur from Thoubal district who is making yarn and woven clothes from waste pineapple leaves.
Mayengbam ningol Lukram ongbi Ranjita is the widow of Lukram Inaocha of Thoubal Khunou.
The mother of a 14-year-old girl, Ranjita has earned many accolades as an agripreneur and given jobs to local unemployed women.
She is also the leader resource person (LRP) of a farmer producer company under Manipur Organic Mission Agency (MOMA) of the State Horticulture and Soil Conservation Department.
She has received a number of awards including the best entrepreneur award, best innovative, best stall and best demonstrator award in many exhibitions and events organised by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) and National Institute of Natural Fibre Engineering and Technology (NINFET).
Ranjita is also receiving the Millionaire Farmer of India (MFOI) Award 2025 in New Delhi, likely on December 8.
The MFOI award is given by the Krishi Jagran, also known as the Oscars of Indian agriculture.
Ranjita is a visionary farmer and an agripreneur. She has turned agriculture into an enterprise through innovation, discipline and determination. She truly embodies the spirit of "Let every farmer be an agripreneur", said Krishi Jagran, the award body.
Ranjita's husband, who ran an Eeco van passenger service, was the main breadwinner of the family. She used to chip in some money weaving clothes.
After her husband passed away in 2019 due to a sudden cardiac arrest, she poured her focus on weaving clothes.
At the same time, she started attending food processing and value addition training programmes in the hope of becoming a farmer and an entrepreneur.
One such training at the Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Thoubal inspired her to start cultivating pineapple in the hope of producing yarn from its fibre.
It was RK Lembisana, KVK Thoubal's Subject Matter Specialist (Home Science), who provided her the knowledge and technology know-how of producing yarn from pineapple leaves.
She started small on farmland near her house on the foothill, and grew in time to cultivate more than 4,000 pineapples a season.
Ranjita started producing yarn and woven clothes from waste pineapple leaves from her farm in 2024.
She now employs eight women from her locality.
Explaining the process of making yarn, Ranjita said, after ripe pineapples are harvested, the leaves are collected for its fibre.
To extract fibre, the leaves are beaten using a hammer or other objects. The beaten leaves are then immersed into water and stored for 12-15 days in a process known as water retting.
In water retting, microorganisms act to remove (rot away) non-cellulosic components from natural fibres. It separates fibres from the plant stem structure.
Ranjita said she uses "Sathi Retting Accelerator", recommended by the ICAR.
After 12-15 days, the leaves are taken out of the water, and the waxy layers/tissues and other impurities are removed, she said.
The fibre thus collected are thoroughly washed and cleaned, and treated with starch to bind the ends of the short strands of the fibres together. The yarn obtained from the process is then spun using "Tareng" and used to make woven clothes, Ranjita said.
One kilogram of pineapple leaves produces 10-13 grams of fibres, she added.
In her first trial with the pineapple yarn, Ranjita said she made 4 Lengyan Phee (shawls).
"So far, I have sold 300 Lengyan Phee made of pineapple fibre yarn. Each costs Rs 1,500," Ranjita said.
Each Lengyan Phee measures 5.6 feet in length and 1.6 feet in width.
A member of the Salai Kanba Lup, Ranjita said the lup has been helping her sell the products.
She also expressed appreciation for individuals and Government officials who recognised her efforts and extended aid.
Ranjita said Horticulture and Soil Conservation Director K Debadatta Sharma has extended a sum of Rs 1.5 lakh to help her procure a machine for producing pineapple fibre yarn.
Ranjita said she is contacting some companies to buy the machine. "Most of the companies don't have the machine specific for producing pineapple fibre yarn. Some of them have asked us to send samples of the fibre/yarn to test compatibility," she said.
On the need for the machine, Ranjita said she could produce yarn in large quantities using it.
A yarn making machine could enhance production and save time, she added.
RK Lembisana, Subject Matter Specialist (Home Science), KVK Thoubal said Ranjita has literally turned "waste into wealth".
Pineapple leaves usually are discarded and they have no value until they are made into a yarn that can be woven into clothes, she said.
The yarn and the woven clothes Ranjita is producing are of good quality. In many exhibitions, her yarn and woven clothes have gained praise, and won her many awards and recognition, she said.
Stating the Government and relevant departments may extend aid to encourage her, Lembisana said the KVK Thoubal will continue to guide her.
Horticulture and Soil Conservation Director K Debadatta said Ranjita must be the first from the North East to produce yarn and woven clothes from waste pineapple leaves.
The venture of making yarn from pineapple leaves is a good initiative and it suits Manipur as pineapple is grown across the State, he said.
When Ranjita's venture expands and many others follow her footsteps, farmers will be able to earn more money/income from selling the pineapple fruit and also the leaves which usually go to waste, Debadatta said.