The Hindu : National : Projects on the anvil for culture fisheries

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Thursday, Jul 12, 2007
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Projects on the anvil for culture fisheries

Ramya Kannan

Thrust on developing brackish water aquaculture

Focus on diversification of species
MPEDA identifies Tuticorin to breed artemia

PORT BLAIR: With the Union Ministry of Agriculture slotting development of culture fisheries for domestic consumption and exports right on top of its agenda, a slew of projects are on the anvil, primarily for the South.

Tamil Nadu will be among the key beneficiaries as the Ministry of Agriculture prepares to harness the potential to multiply aquaculture produce manifold, while making the process sustainable without compromising on the environmental safety. The focus is also on diversification of species during the next five years, when aquaculture is expected to grow exponentially.

Breeding park

In Tamil Nadu, work has started on developing a park to breed artemia, Minister of State for Commerce Jairam Ramesh told The Hindu recently in Port Blair. Artemia is brine shrimp used as larval food for culture species.

It is said that 90 per cent or more of the world’s artemia cysts comes from the Great Salt Lake, Utah. Mr. Ramesh said India was importing nearly Rs.50 crore worth of artemia every year, its entire requirement for feeding shrimp grown on culture farms.

The Marine Products Export Development Authority had identified Tuticorin as the only place in India where artemia could be bred, considering the high levels of salinity required for the fish-feed.

An investment of Rs. 3 crore had gone into setting up the park, which should commence breeding of artemia by next year, MPEDA chairman Mohan Kumar said.

Extension works

Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu has been the beneficiary of a Rs.25-crore project that Commerce Minister Kamal Nath inaugurated recently. The Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Aquaculture, set to commence work by March 2008, will take up research and extension works.

Organic aquaculture

Another major investment project is the upcoming National Centre for Sustainable Aquaculture in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh. To be implemented in collaboration with the Swedish International Development Agency, this initiative will develop organic aquaculture methods suitable for Indian conditions. The international debate on pesticide residue and the requirement to reduce the levels of pesticide residue in Indian marine products sparked off the idea to set up the centre.

Mr. Ramesh said the project would be set up at a cost of Rs. 10 crore.

He added that the thrust would also be on developing brackish water aquaculture, which yields 50 per cent of all culture produce.

An analysis of the potential and usage of different states for brackish water aquaculture revealed that while Tamil Nadu, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal had developed their potential sustainably, Gujarat and Maharashtra, two states with good estimated potential brackish water area, had hardly tapped their reserves. Gujarat itself accounts for over one third of the total brackish water area in the country.

Over the next five years the focus would be on developing the potential of these two states, he added.

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