The year 2021 is the one-hundredth anniversary of the birth of the ‘Father of Induced Fish Breeding in India’, the late Dr Hiralal Chaudhuri, DSc, former Senior Fishery Scientist at the ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Barrackpore, India and Ex-Chief Technical Advisor in Aquaculture, FAO/UNDP at Lao PDR. In his honour, National Fish Farmers’ Day is celebrated annually on 10 July, to acknowledge the contribution made by professional fish farmers and breeders to India’s economy, food supply and production of table-sized major carps and other important inland food fishes.

Focussed explorations from the ICAR-National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources (NBFGR), an organisation mandated for cataloguing of genetic resources of India include surveys of various ecosystems ranging from fauna of deep sea to the high-altitude regions of the Himalaya, falling under diverse biogeographic zones and unexplored regions of the country, including North-eastern India, Western Ghats, Lakshadweep and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. This article describes the results of these efforts, which include discovery of 14 new fish species and six new distribution records between 2015 to 2020.

This report summarises the proceedings of the 19th meeting of the Advisory Group, held 26-27 November 2020 via video conference. The group's role includes reviewing disease trends and emerging threats in the region, identifying developments in global aquatic disease issues and standards, evaluating the Quarterly Aquatic Animal Disease Reporting Programme and providing guidance on regional strategies to improve aquatic animal health management.

Video recordings of technical presentations from the Online Consultation on Strategies for Hepatopancreatic Microsporidiosis caused by Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (9-10 February 2021) are now available for viewing via Youtube. Presentations include information on the history of EHP, development of research tools, transmission route and recommendations for its control on farm.

Please visit NACA's Youtube channel to access the videos. Our Youtube channel is brand new, please consider subscribing for more technical aquaculture videos!

The 87th edition of the Quarterly Aquatic Animal Disease Report contains information from fifteen governments. The foreword discusses the 19th Meeting of the Asia Regional Advisory Group on Aquatic Animal Health, held 26-27 November 2020.

In this issue:

Exotic trout fisheries resources and potentialities in Uttarakhand; Scenario of captive production of Clarias magur in India; Strategies to reduce feed cost by improving gut health and nutrient utilisation of fish in aquaculture; Fish pituitary gland collection and supply as a vocation in West Bengal, India; Coral trout Plectropomus leopardus aquaculture research and fingerling production in Indonesia; Smartphone app improving smallholder shrimp farming practices in Bangladesh; NACA Newsletter.

In retail fish markets in Kolkata city proper, suburbs and neighbouring districts, pituitary glands are collected as a profession from the heads of mature fish. The preserved glands are used to induce breeding via hypophysation in carp hatcheries throughout West Bengal, playing an important role in the availability of carp seed to support aquaculture operations. This article describes the livelihoods of pituitary gland collectors and traders in West Bengal, India.

Feed is an important input that involves nearly 60% of the total production cost in commercial aquaculture. Hence, nutritionally balanced and cost-effective diets play a large role in deciding the return from an aquaculture venture. Nutritionists are searching for alternative ingredients and approaches to offset the use of fishmeal in aquaculture feeds. This article discusses strategies to reduce feed cost by promoting gut health and nutrient utlilisation, including: Use of probiotics and prebiotics,  supplementation with exogenous enzymes, essential nutrients and chemoattractants, and use of other feed additives such as acidifiers to improve digestibility and mycotoxin binders.

Clarias magur, locally known as magur, is a well-preferred medium sized catfish among Indian consumers. Difficulties such as shortages of effective inducing agents and the erratic response to induced breeding, low survival in different life stages, slow growth, and lack of effective feeds have been a bottleneck for the wider adoption of this fish by farmers. There has been considerable research to simplify the technology and disseminate it among farmers over the last decade. This article summarises these attempts and describes the present level of its technology practiced in India.

Commercial trout farming in Uttarakhand has advanced progressively during the last decade and has become a profitable occupation among the rural masses especially in the colder regimes where no other fish farming has possibilities. The rainbow trout here plays the most dominant role as a commercially important candidate species for culture in this hill locked Himalayan state of India. This article describes the current status of trout fisheries resources and trout aquaculture in Uttarakhand, and their potential further development.