Lakshadweep, a group of islands Arabian Sea, which witnessed anti-India protests for a couple of months by secessionist forces who were out to create a hub of narcotics trade, is back to normalcy and that too in style. The residents of the picturesque islands are busy driving the economy in full speed adding colour to the Blue Revolution conceived by the Centre.
Now it is time for agatti, arabianesis, koyas, sulci palma and purushothamani to rejuvenate the lives of Lakshadweep population. What and who are these characters? That we will come to later in the story.
It all began last month with the two-day long tour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the islands where he interacted with the local residents, especially women. When the women shared with Prime Minister Modi how they are struggling to meet both ends, the latter explained to them about the potential of Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PM MSY), a scheme to bring about the Blue Revolution through sustainable and responsible development.
The Prime Minister conferred with scientists of National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources, a unit under Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Dr UK Sarkar, director, ICAR, briefed the Prime Minister about the five varieties of ornamental shrimps developed by the Centre for Peninsular Marine Fish Genetic Resources.
“Captive breeding of these shrimps is an ideal profession for women because it needs care, skill and of course the motherly touch. Beautiful shrimps with unique colour and design patterns have been developed in captivity by our scientists and we handed them over to the women in Lakshadweep,” said Dr UK Sarkar.
Dr TT Ajith Kumar, principal scientist and the chief architect of the project, said community aquaculture units, each with an investment of Rs 2.5 lakh and minimum ten women fishers started functioning before the Prime Minister’s flight reached New Delhi.
“There are 45 women fully engaged in breeding these unique shrimps which are a treat to the eyes. We have developed ornamental fish breeds and they command a good market,” Ajith told The Pioneer.
“The ornamental shrimps will go much higher places than the ornamental fish breeds and will add colour to the Blue Revolution,” he added.
According to Dr Sarker, the captive breeding of ornamental shrimp has the potential to emerge as an alternative livelihood for people in the coastal communities. Ajith says the shrimp developed in Lakshadweep will be different from that bred in Gulf of Mannar. “In the course of time, the Lakshadweep and Gulf of Mannar breeds will emerge as global trademarks,” said Ajith.
With the Union Government giving the green signal for an international airport at Kavaratti, the islanders’ concern about marketing the shrimp stand was resolved. Praful Patel, administrator of the islands, who had to face the ire of a group of people when he took charge in 2022, is a much relieved official now. Whatever he launched was met with suspicion. Even his efforts to make fresh and quality dairy products available to the residents were met with allegations that he was trying to saffronize the islands.
Agatti, arabianesis, koyas, sulci palma and purushothamani are shrimp varieties invented by Dr Ajith and his team of researchers. The variety Koyas is a tribute to the sea faring population of the islands while purushothamani is the ICAR research scholar who lost his life mid-way through the research. The scenic islands will soon emerge as a hub of unique ornamental shrimps.
