KOCHI: At a time when the amount of fish coming to the market has undergone a sharp decline, the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) has come up with a new system to boost the seed production of commercially important marine fish species. It has launched Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS), which filters water inside the fish tank helping to reuse the water, at its Vizhinjam Research Centre last week.
This is the first RAS in the state and the fourth in the country set up by CMFRI. The other three are in Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, Mandapam in Tamil Nadu and karwar in Karnataka.
The CMFRI unit in Vizhinjam has been involved in the breeding of ornamental fish at the facility. The institute says Vizhinjam is the best place in Kerala to launch RAS at present and it would consider opening more such units in other parts of the state.
Inaugurating the facility, the Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Sudarshan Bhagat said farmer-friendly technologies should be developed to attract people into fish farming.
“In order to solve the issues in the fisheries sector following the decline in the availability of fish from the sea, steps should be taken to improve the facilities and technologies for boosting the fish production through alternative ways,” the minister said.
He said mariculture practices should be given due importance to increase marine fish production.
“Sea cage farming is one of the best alternatives to increase the fish production and improve fisheries sector”, he said lauding the CMFRI for its initiatives to popularise the technology of cage farming across the coastal states.
In addition, farming of ornamental fishes, oysters and molluscs should also be promoted among the farmers by giving training to them, Sudarshan Bhagat said. He visited hatcheries and marine aquarium at the CMFRI.
According to A Gopalakrishnan, director of CMFRI, the newly installed RAS facility at the CMFRI could accelerate the growth of mariculture in the country.
“Mariculture is the hope of future generation. CMFRI is now focusing on research to enhance the mariculture activities through cage farming methods,” he said adding that the sea cage farming of commercially important fish species such as silver pompano, cobia, groupers, lobsters etc would help the country to increase its blue economy.