Shri Sanjiv Kumar, I.A.S., Additional Secretary & Financial Advisor Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying visited the Experimental Station of ICAR-Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture, Muttukadu, Chennai on 26th October, 2023 to review the ongoing PMMSY projects in operation at CIBA.
Dr. Kuldeep K. Lal, Director of CIBA, welcomed the Additional Secretary and provided an overview of the institute’s infrastructure, mandates, activities, and accomplishments. During a brief presentation, the Director highlighted achievements in species diversification, technological innovations in feed, hatchery seed production, farming, disease diagnostics, prophylactics, and technology dissemination across the country. The Director also briefed the Additional Secretary on the status of activities and fund utilization in the three ongoing Department of Fisheries (DoF) sponsored projects under PMMSY.
In his remarks, the Additional Secretary commended CIBA’s various activities and achievements in the field of aquaculture. He emphasized the importance of genetically improved native shrimp species for sustaining shrimp aquaculture in India. He praised CIBA’s efforts in implementing shrimp crop insurance in the country and expressed his conviction in the concept of a new-age shrimp farming system, incorporating proven technologies such as HDPE lined rearing systems, two-stage farming, feeding automation, biofloc, partial circulation, and increased bio-security. He assured that DoF would release funds promptly based on fund utilization, ensuring that funding would not impede the progress of project activities.
Following discussions, the Additional Secretary visited various facilities, including the model of the proposed modern shrimp hatchery and nucleus breeding center under the first phase of the GIPPI project, a state-of-the-art pilot-scale aquafeed mill, crab hatchery, new-age shrimp farming project site, and shrimp and finfish hatcheries.
During interactions with scientists, Sanjiv Kumar, I.A.S., emphasized the importance of developing innovative and efficient technology options for the farming community. He urged researchers to focus on reducing farm input costs, creating new markets for diversified fish and fishery products, and developing responsive extension systems to disseminate technologies to end-users.
