SRIKAKULAM: Farmers of several coastal villages of Santsbommali, Etcherla, Ranasthalam, Polaki, Sompeta, Ichchapuram and other mandals of Srikakulam district are switching to prawn cultivation from paddy and other agriculture crops. As the paddy cultivation leaves the farmers in debt due to insufficient irrigation facilities in the area, they are slowly switching to prawn farming. Moreover, the prawn farmers in the coastal villages are making good profits. Another reason is the availability of salt water for prawn farming in the coastal areas.
Initially, farmers of Seethanagaram village of Santhabommali mandal and few villages of Etchela mandal have started the prawn cultivation. “I have been cultivating prawns in five acres of land for the last five years and I have never suffered a loss,” said Ram Mohan Rao, a farmer from M Sunnapalli of Santhabommali mandal. He said that several other farmers in the village have switched to prawn farming.
To promote prawn cultivation, the district fisheries department has been creating awareness among the farmers on various schemes. “The State government will grant 40 per cent subsidy on converting the agriculture lands for the prawn farming,” said fisheries department joint director Sreenivasa Rao. He told TNIE that the State government was also providing subsidy on purchasing the feed and medicine for prawn farming. “About 60 per cent of the investment in the prawn farming will go to feed and medicine,” he added.
Prawn farming has extended to over 2,000 hectares in various coastal mandals in the district, he said and appealed to the farmers to contact the local fisheries officials for technical inputs regarding prawn cultivation. Similarly, the District Cooperative Marketing Society is mulling to set up a few prawn processing units in the district.