VIJAYAWADA: The first day of Aquabiz 2017, an international exhibition organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in association with Department of Fisheries to provide a platform to farmers to exchange information about aqua culture with international companies, concluded on a grand note on Friday with delegates, scientists, traders, researchers and students from countries like China, Thailand, Malaysia, Taiwan, France, Germany and USA giving presentations.
Minister for, Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Cooperatives Ch Adi Narayana Reddy inaugurated the exhibition. Addressing the gathering, he said that Aqua sector is playing a key role in the growth of the State and there is an urgent need to follow an integrated approach to developing aquaculture. He also assured farmers that help will be given in terms of technological developments under the CSR initiatives of the aqua industry. “The State has tremendous potential in the field of aquaculture as it has rivers and a 974 km seacoast. Emphasis should be given towards cold storage facilities for ensuring remunerative prices for the farmers,” he said.
Commissioner of Fisheries Ram Shankar Naik sought the support of all stakeholders to accelerate the growth in the fisheries sector. “These type of exhibitions will give small farmers an opportunity to meet international traders and exporters and know the latest technologies and trends in the field that are being used in various countries,” he said. On the second day of the conference, experts will discuss yeast product applications, manpower requirements, initiatives of Fisheries department, Harvest technologies and other aspects. As many as 106 stalls and 72 aqua related companies are participating in the exhibition held at PWD grounds. On the final day of the exhibition on September 17, CM Chandrababu Naidu will participate in the valedictory ceremony.