To address the challenge of developing the aquaculture sector in harmony with climate change, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University recently established a State of Art ‘Capacity Building Resource Centre’ (CBRC) under Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) of Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying (GOI), for promoting climate smart intensive aquaculture technologies (IATs), like recirculatory aquaculture system (RAS) and
biofloc based aquaculture system (BAS) in the region. Dr. Inderjeet Singh, Vice-Chancellor, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana said that the CBRC, established with a total budget of 1.39 crore, is first of its kind in the northern India and is mandated to fulfill the training needs of fish farmers, aspiring entrepreneurs, concerned officials and scientists, for sustainable development of economically viable intensive aquaculture technologies for the region.
Dr. Meera D Ansal, Dean, College of Fisheries said that these climate smart IATs require only 10-15% of water and land per kg fish production
as compared to traditional pond aquaculture practices and hence, need to be developed to meet the envisioned production targets from the depleting aquatic resources. University harvested its first pangas catfish crop from RAS and BAS successfully, with respective average productivity of 15 kg/m3 and 11kg/m3, as compared to pond productivity of 1.5-2.0 kg/m3.
The university aims to cater capacity building needs of the stakeholders of the region; develop cost effective RAS and BAS models as per regional climate; and promote entrepreneurship among youth and young fisheries professionals. About
190 stakeholders from Punjab, including farmers, State Fisheries Officials, aspirant entrepreneurs and students, have been trained by the university in the last one year. Prospective stakeholders from neighboring/other states/UT i.e., Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh have been invited for hands-on training in IATs.
To promote culture of fish species suitable for RAS and BAS, the university also promoted culture of pangas catfish in the State through off campus demonstrations and technical handholding, benefitting 22 entrepreneurs. Further, new species like singhi (Heteropneustes fossilis) and climbing perch (Anabas testudineus), are being tested to develop diversified economic culture technologies for RAS and BAS as per regional needs and climate. Many RAS and BAS are being established in the north-western region of the country without any formal training. Hence, CBRC is going to play an important role in R&D and capacity building of stakeholders for sustainable development of these IATs.
