Aquaculture Asia Magazine, January-March 2023

Cirrhinus reba or ‘reba carp’ is a commercially important indigenous minor carp species distributed over south Asia. It is highly popular among consumers and fetches a better price than the major carps.  A herbivorous species, C. reba can easily digest plant protein sources. It has been identified as a priority species for aquaculture diversification in India and has great scope for incorporation in carp culture and polyculture systems.

The yellow tail catfish Pangasius pangasius is found throughout the rivers of the Indian subcontinent. A large, omnivorous, and highly fecund species, it is suitable for aquaculture. Initial work on captive breeding of yellow tail catfish was carried out by scientists from the ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture in the early 1990's. This article provides updated information on captive reproduction, larval rearing and nusery techniques for this species, which will be of use for farmers and entrepreneurs interested in producing it.

Since the late 1960s, brackishwater rural aquaculture in West Bengal grew and improved at a fast rate, from an extensive method of farming to a modified-extensive method. The indigenous bheri fishery is a well-known extensive aquaculture system throughout all coastal states of India. Bheri fishery isn’t a capital-intensive practice. This article describes farming practices in bheri systems in West Bengal, India, including their integration with mangrove aquaculture. A second part of this article will be published in the next issue.

Hilsa are a highly favoured food fish on the Indian subcontinent, but wild populations have been declining very fast due to over exploitation and disturbance of their riverine spawning grounds. Hilsa have a complex life cycle, migrating from the sea to riverine environments to spawn and are very sensitive to handling, which has complicated efforts to breed them in captivity. The ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture has initiated a programme to domesticate hilsa to reduce dependence on wild catch. This article documents the first successful approaches to rear larvae through to table sized fish and to develop mature hilsa broodstock in a farm environment.

Today, tribal people comprise 8.6 percent of the Indian population and are one of the most disadvantaged sections of society. Many tribal groups in different parts of the country depend on natural resources for their livelihoods, to which their access has been progressively eroded. With financial support from ICAR-CIFT the College of Fisheries, Gumla, undertook seven training programmes for tribal women from economically marginalised tribal communities in the preparation and marketing of value-added fisheries products. The training encouraged women to develop small businesses building on their micro-entrepreneurship.