During the past two-and-a-half months, around 574 crore ‘Spawn Fish’ seeds have been produced across Chhattisgarh.
According to an official press release, the State has recorded 96 per cent of its production of such seeds. The Fisheries Department had aimed of producing 592 crore and 95 lakh seeds of Spawn fishes.
The production of Spawn Fish seeds is done with the joint coordination of Fisheries Department, Fishermen’s Federation and Private Parties. Among the 574 Crore Spawn Fish Seeds, 84.50 Crore seeds have been produced by Fishermen’s Federation, 150.25 crore seeds by Fisheries Department and 356.40 crore seeds by the Private Parties.
The officials of the Fisheries Department informed that the produced seeds are used for preparing Standard Fries. Till August, the Department has gained success in producing 58.47 crore Standard Fry seeds and is targeting to produce 149 Standard Fry seeds by the end of the on-going financial year.
Fisheries Department Minister Brijmohan Agrawal said in the last five years, State has become self-reliant in the field of fish production.
Significantly, at the time of State formation in 2000, as many as 25 Crore seeds were produced which increased to 134.38 Crore in 2014-15 fiscal year.
The fish seeds production had been increased in as many as 64 hatcheries and 57 fish farms in Chhattisgarh.
Agrawal said that fish rearing is highly profitable as a part of allied agriculture activity in Chhattisgarh.
He said that Chhattisgarh is now self-sufficient in fish seed production.
The Minister said that Chhattisgarh stands sixth in fish production in the country. About 2.849 lakh metric tonnes of fish had been produced in the year 2014-15.
The officers said that 'Cage Culture' system of fish-rearing programmes was started in Chhattisgarh and now the State tops the list of Cage Culture pattern of fish production in the country. They are grown in in Saroda Sagar, Sheer Pani, Gonga canal, Jhumka waters and Tourenga waters.
About 350 Metric Tonnes (MTs) of fish was produced with Cage Culture system. The Department is operating a scheme of constructing houses for fishermen. About 400 houses will be built for fishermen families in 2015-16.
The Department officers revealed that Chhattisgarh is self-sufficient in fish production. The fish seed needed for fishermen is produced in the State iteslf.
The progressive farmers are producing 8,000 to 12,000 kilograms per hectare of fish like Katla, Rohu and Mrugal varieties.
In February this year, the State government had announced that about 39000 fishermen of the State would get employment through fish farming in the Anicuts and barrages constructed over rivers and nullahs.
The government has also banned breeding, farming, transport and trade of Big Head and Mangur species of fishes in the State.
Decisions in this regard were taken by the State Cabinet in a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Raman Singh recently.
In the meeting it was resolved that the fishermen should be included as members of more than 1000 Fishermen Cooperative Societies of the State. They would be given opportunity of fish farming in the 400 Anicuts constructed in past few years and the Anicuts and barrages under construction in the State.
The Anicuts and barrages would be allotted to the Fishermen Cooperative Societies by the Directorate of Fisheries as per procedure. The water reservoirs with capacity greater than 1000 hectares would be allotted to Fisheries Federation which will auction these bodies as per procedure.
Those who get these reservoirs through tender will provide advance techniques of fish farming to the fishermen besides employment to them.
The State Cabinet had also decided to ban the breeding, farming, transportation and trade of Big Head and Mangur fishes in the State. These foreign fishes eat the local species and thereby posing a potential threat on the existence of local species.
There was a quantum jump in fish production in Chhattisgarh which now stands higher than the national average, officials claimed.
The fish production was 2,975 kilo per hectare in 2013-14, while the national average is 2,650 kilo per hectare, they stated.