World Aquaculture March 2019

WWW.WA S.ORG • WORLD AQUACULTURE • MARCH 2019 25 backwater oyster Crassostrea madrasensis , Japanese pearl oyster Pinctada fucata ) and seaweed species like Gracilaria edulis . Recently marine aquaculture production has been increasing. Nevertheless, the production is still very modest and is often based on traditional practices. Additionally, the great existing potential for sea-farming of finfish is not utilized, mainly because of technical and marketing issues. Marine aquaculture mainly takes place in the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. There is also attention to production of seabass and cobia in circular cages. Seaweed farming is slowly gaining ground in Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar in the state of Tamil Nadu. Seaweed farming assures a high profit margin because inputs such as sunlight and seawater are free of cost. Government Support  The Ministry of Agriculture of the Government of India has a Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries with a Division of Fisheries as the nodal agency. This agency is responsible for planning, monitoring and funding several centrally sponsored developmental schemes related to fisheries and aquaculture in all of the Indian states. Most of the states have a separate Ministry for Fisheries or else remain within the Ministry of Animal Husbandry. All states have well-organized fisheries departments, with fisheries executive officers at the district level and fisheries extension officers at the block level, who are involved in overall development of the sector. However, the administrative structure at the state level varies from state to state. Centrally sponsored schemes like the 422 FFDAs cover almost all districts in the Country and the 39 BFDAs in the maritime districts have also contributed to aquaculture development.  The Indian Council of Agricultural Research located within the Department of Agricultural Research and Education, which in turn is within the Indian Ministry of Agriculture, has a Division of Fisheries, which undertakes R&D on aquaculture and fisheries through a number of research institutes. There are about 695 Krishi Vigyan Kendras  (Farm Science Centres) in the country, operated through State Agricultural Universities, ICAR Research Institutes and NGOs, most of which also undertake aquaculture development within their scope of activities. Future Prospects  Aquaculture over recent years has led to substantial socio- economic benefits such as increased nutritional levels, income, employment and foreign exchange. It has also brought vast unutilized and underutilized land and water resources under culture. With freshwater aquaculture being compatible with other farming systems, it is largely environmentally friendly and provides for recycling and utilization of several types of organic wastes. Over the years, however, culture practices have undergone considerable intensification and, with the possibility of obtaining high productivity levels, there has been a state of flux between the different farming practices. In the brackishwater sector there were issues of waste generation, conversion of agricultural land, salinization, degradation of soil and the environment due to the extensive use of drugs and chemicals, destruction of mangroves and so on. Although some of these issues posed concerns; most, however, were isolated instances with the bulk of farming conforming to eco-requirements. India has become the epicentre of the aquaculture world with its continued increase in shrimp production for the past several years. Shrimp production in the country crossed 500,000 t in 2018 and has the potential to top the list of shrimp producers in the world. The main reasons for this achievement being the strict usage of Specific Pathogen Free (SPF) broodstock, adoption of improved hatchery and farming technologies and responsible farming practices. Top ten fish producing states in India during 2016-2017. STATE PRODUCTION (1000 t ) Andhra Pradesh............................................................2,352 West Bengal.................................................................1,671 Gujarat...........................................................................810 Kerala.............................................................................728 Tamil Nadu.....................................................................709 Karnataka.......................................................................581 Maharashtra...................................................................580 Orissa.............................................................................521 Bihar...............................................................................507 Uttar Pradesh..................................................................505 National TOTAL.........................................................10,758 SPECIAL WORKSHOP ON DEALING WITH EMERGING TRENDS IN SHRIMP AQUACULTURE Technical sessions at the upcoming Asian Pacific Aquaculture 2019 conference in Chennai, India, are aimed at increasing the productivity of Asian Pacific aquaculture through responsible aquaculture practices. The Indian shrimp aquaculture sector continues to grow and has emerged as the second largest producer of farmed shrimp in the world. A workshop has been scheduled for 20 June 2019 that will present a regional action plan, results by country and continuity proposals, as well as the presentation of the Technical Guide on the application of resource efficiency and cleaner production in the shrimp farming sector. Aquaculture over recent years has led to substantial socio-economic benefits such as increased nutritional levels, income, employment and foreign exchange. It has also brought vast unutilized and underutilized land and water resources under culture.