World Fishery Day observed in Agriculture Training Centre, Goalpara

A CORRESPONDENT

DHUBRI: The zonal-level World Fisheries Day 2020 was observed under the auspices of Goalpara Fishery Department with a day-long programme recently at Agriculture Training Centre.

Apart from farmers from Goalpara, a large number of farmers from Barpeta, Dhubri and Bongaigaon participated in the programme that was inaugurated by Senior Scientist and Head of Krishi Vigyan Kendra, ICAR, NRC-Pig, Dudhnoi, Dr. Hitu Chodhury, and Junior Scientist, Livestock Research Station, Assam Agricultural University, JyotismitaThakuria.

Delivering a presentation about the scopes and prospects of scientific fish farming in Assam, Thakuria underscored the need of basic knowledge of fish farming practices among farmers, water quality criteria of pond and several disease-related issues that farmers were confronting in the field.

Head of Krishi Vigyan Kendra at Abhayapuri, Dr. Chinmoy Sarma, also took part in the deliberation and spoke about Climate Resilient Integra, farming system approaches for achieving higher income level of farmers. Briefing about the programme, Goalpara District Fishery Development Officer Dr. Anupam Sharma said that fisheries was a sunshine sector of the Indian economy with various resources and potentialities which alone engaged 14 million people at primary level and earned over Rs 10,000 crore per annum through exports. Dr Sharma stated that for the first time the Department of Fisheries under the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India, had conferred the award of Best State to Assam among the north-eastern States. He said that Goalpara district had made commendable progress in table fish production of 10885 MT during 2019-20 with 100 million fish fry.

Dr Sharma said that several new and innovative components of fish culture like Biofloc, large RAS and post-harvesting measures like Bicycle with Ice Box, Motor Cycle with Ice Box, E-Rickshaw with Ice Box and Fish Kiosk had been taken up in Goalpara district apart from conventional new Rearing Pond Construction and New Pond under Pradhan Mantri Mat SampadaYojana (PMMSY) and this was expected to generate additional employment, augment fish production and ensure efficient market linkage.

Senior Scientist and Head of Krishi Vigyan Kendra, ICAR, NRC-Pig, Dr. Hitu Choudhury in his address said that fish being the easily available source of protein to 25 per cent people across the globe and traditional skill of tribal community of the region, must be assessed while developing strategies for addressing nutritional security.

During the event, Dr. Itesh Bordoloi from Bongaigaon was awarded with a citation as the 'Best Aquapreneur' of lower Assam zone for having successfully installed intensive fish culture unit called Recirculatory Aquaculture System (RAS) under CSS scheme of Blue Revolution.

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