Sabai Grass Craft

Sabai grass is one of the natural fibers plenty available in
the forests of Mayurbhanja district in Odisha. The tribal people called it as “Bobei
Dauda or Bobei Ghasa” locally. The scientific name of sabai grass is ‘Eulaliopsis
Binata’, which consists of long leaf fibers. The fiber length of sabai grass is more
than that of bamboo but fiber diameter is 2.5 lower than bamboo .Sabai Grass
consists of high cellulose and pentose with low lignin content (non woody
plants).Sabai grass is mainly used in the paper industry .The artistic hands of
rural people have given a new recognition in handicraft. Sabai grass is collected
from the forest mainly by the rural women who are then dried and made into
ropes by manually operated machines .The dyes used for coloring the rope are
synthetic dyes. These are then used for making utility items.