Strand of rope obtained from tree on the foothills of Kathmandu and Sikkim (5)

I believe the answer is:

oakum

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But I can't explain it at all! Could you help me understand?

(Other definitions for oakum that I've seen before include "Rope fibre for caulking wooden ships" , "Tarred ropes teased out for caulking ships" , "Fibre from unravelled old rope" , "One hand-picked" , "Tarred rope" .)

I've seen this clue in The Hindu.

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