A comparative study on the aquaculture practices adopted by fish farmers in Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal

Abstract

Carp culture has proved sustainable over the years in India. Freshwater aquaculture depends mainly on carp culture that accounts for around 80% of the total inland fish production. The present study compares the socio-economic profile of the fish farmers and the aquaculture practices of the two leading fish producing states of India, namely Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal. Majority of the respondent farmers of Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal practiced aquaculture in owned (84%) and leased (67%) ponds, respectively. Although the farmers of both the states cultured carps, differences in farm holdings, size of the pond/farm, species cultured, stocking and stocking density, fish seed procurement, nursery management, feed and feeding management, pond fertilization, harvesting frequency, mode of fish marketing, source of information on aquaculture, fish seeds and disease treatment, perception on aquaculture were noticed. Majority of the farmers in West Bengal (68%) had undergone short-term training in aquaculture and few among them (15%) were graduates. Disease is the major problem of Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal fish farmers. The magnitude of other problems was, however, found to be different among the farmers of both the states. The survey revealed that the Government organizations, non-governmental organizations, educational institutions and other agencies failed to influence the farmers on aquaculture development.