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The Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute has kick-started a major project for boosting open sea cage farming in Indian waters. In the first phase of the programme, CMFRI is training fishermen in all the maritime states in open sea cage farming so as to bolster mariculture activities in the wake of a stagnation witnessed in capture fishery.
The project envisages accelerating the process of ushering in the Blue Revolution by providing effective training to 5,000 fishermen across the country, with financial support of nearly Rs 1 crore from the National Fisheries Development Board. According to CMFRI Director, A. Gopalakrishnan, cage fish farming technology has proved 70 times more productive than normal methods of farming in ponds. The conventional pond culture of marine fish produces an average 0.5 kg/m3 (5000 kg/ha), whereas cage farming offers a production of 35 kg/m3.
On the scarcity of fish seed required for boosting cage fish farming, he said, CMFRI has commenced work to establish a brood bank of high-value marine fish suitable for cage farming, with financial support of Rs 9 crore from the NFDB.
Deputy Director of Fisheries, S. Mahesh, who inaugurated the training programme, said the State Fisheries Department had formulated plans to extend cage fish farming in Kerala sea waters, with the technical support of CMFRI.
CMFRI's mariculture division is coordinating the training programme. Imelda Joseph, head of the division, said the country should turn to mariculture such as open sea cage farming to meet the growing demand for fish. It is presumed that by 2030, fish consumption in developing and developed countries is expected to increase by 57 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively.
Species such as cobia, seabass, groupers, snappers, mullet, lobster and pearl spot are suitable for cage farming in sea waters. It is expected that sea cage farming will get a major boost once the National Mariculture Policy is notified and comes into force in the country in the near future, she added.
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