ICAR-Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture (ICAR-CIBA), Chennai received the ‘Appreciation Award’ for the exemplary work in “People’s Movement for Clean Cities -2022” under the Swachh Bharat Mission from the Greater Chennai Corporation, Chennai, Tamil Nadu based on the range and scale of organizing the various swachh activities including innovative waste management to waste-to-wealth initiatives besides documentation and dissemination of the technologies for waste management since 2015. Dr.C.V.Sairam, Director-in-Charge, Dr.P.Mahalakshmi, Principal Scientist & Nodal Officer, Swachh Bharat Mission, ICAR-CIBA and Mr.Jagan Mohan Raj, Member, Swachh Bharat Mission committee of CIBA received the award from the Respectful Mayor of Chennai Ms.Priya Rajan on 26.12.2022.
ICAR-CIBA has brought out a unique technology for recycling fish waste to value added products branded as CIBA-PlanktonPlus and CIBA-HortiPlus for field application in aquaculture and agriculture. Both the products have been commercialised for mass production and supply to the end users. This technology has given employment opportunities for more than 150 fishers in various coastal states and contributed for their livelihood security and upliftment of their socio-economic status. More than 355 fisher folk and farmers were trained on recycling of fish-wastes to value added products using this technology. M/s. Nambikkai Fish Farmers Group, Chennai formed by ICAR-CIBA to produce the above value added products with the technical support of CIBA was recognized as the “Best Fisheries Self Help Group in 2020” by the National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB), Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying, Government of India.
Since 2015, ICAR-CIBA organized various activities viz., more than 100 awareness programmes on cleanliness, hygiene, sanitation, Shun Single Use Plastics and water harvesting; around 120 tree plantations; development of kitchen gardens, and organic and natural farming; establishment of four fish waste processing in more than 25 adopted villages in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal. Further, various swachh activities were highlighted in more than 65 social media in the form of newspaper, TV channel, you tube channel, website for creating awareness among people. In recognition of the above Swachh Bharat activities of 2021-22, ICAR-CIBA, Chennai was honoured with Swachhta Pakhwada Award 2021 (second prize) among all the ICAR Institutes in the country.
