The Hindu : Business : MPEDA on a mission mode to expand

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jun 14, 2006

Business

Business

MPEDA on a mission mode to expand

Staff Reporter

Aims at increasing production in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Orissa

KOCHI: The Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) is looking at States such as Gujarat, Maharashtra and Orissa for substantial expansion of aquaculture aimed at raising the production of freshwater prawns and shrimp.

The authority is on a `mission-mode programme' to increase aquaculture in these States, which have potential in the field. Aquaculture in an additional spread of 10,000 hectares is expected to be achieved in these States by 2009-10, says a review of the performance of the seafood industry during the last financial year. An area of 1.4-lakh hectares is under shrimp culture and 43,433 hectares under scampi culture in coastal areas of India, say the MPEDA figures. The country produced 1.43 tonnes of shrimp and 42,820 tonnes of freshwater prawns during last year. The bulk of this production has come from traditionally aquaculture-strong States, such as Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

The authority has also been holding campaigns in rural aquaculture centres against the use of prohibited antibiotics and pharmacologically active substances.

To mitigate crucial disease challenges in aquaculture, the MPEDA has set up the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Aquaculture, with its headquarters in Thirumullaivasal in Tamil Nadu.

The centre has taken the lead in developing technology for aquaculture of finfish, such as Asian seabasses and groupers. The centre has also taken the lead in developing culture of live groupers in open sea cages in the Andaman islands. It had also been instrumental in streamlining the production of mud crab seeds for the first time in the country.

This breakthrough helps propagate large-scale mud crab farming and increased exports. The centre has also achieved a breakthrough in breeding blue sea crab for enabling large-scale seed production.

It was recently that the centre launched a project on the Andaman islands to produce specific pathogen-free (SPF) shrimp brood stock through domestication of tiger shrimps.

On another front, collaboration between the MPEDA and the Network Aquaculture Centre of Asia-Pacific, Bangkok, has improved shrimp health management and raised aquaculture production in States such as Andhra Pradesh.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Business