THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Union Minister of Fisheries Parshottam Rupala has outlined a comprehensive plan to boost the mariculture sector in the country, saying that the immediate focus is on promoting offshore cage farming using bigger cages. He was speaking during his visit to the Vizhinjam Regional Centre of the ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI ) in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday.
“Cage fish farming is to be expanded to offshore waters with better cage designs having a diameter of 30m or more that can accommodate lakhs of juveniles,” he said. At present, cage farming is undertaken in nearshore waters using cages with a diameter of 6m. The minister urged the CMFRI to spearhead research and development efforts in creating the bigger cages.
“This is expected to significantly boost mariculture production in the country”, said Rupala.
The minister also urged CMFRI to expand seed production technologies for finfishes in all the coastal states by utilising the public-private partnership (PPP) method. This would help address the seed constraints and make available the required seeds to the fish farmers all over the country.
Rupala indicated that the Union government would soon come up with a Mariculture Leasing Policy to ensure the sustainable use of marine resources. The minister underscored the untapped potential of pearl oyster production, urging CMFRI to take a proactive role in scaling up its manufacturing in a bigger way. Acknowledging the critical role of hatchery technologies in supporting large-scale pearl oyster production, he emphasised the need for research and innovation in this area. Rupala was accompanied by Union Minister of State for Fisheries L Murugan and Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan.