May 31: The export of cultured shrimp or aquaculture shrimp is expected to be worth Rs 2,000 crore in the current financial year. Shrimp production, both in saline and fresh waters, in farms of Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and West Bengal is very promising and the farms are free from any major virus attack, according to M Sakthivel, President of Aquaculture Foundation of India.Last year, after the Supreme Court judgment of December 1996, there was an element of uncertainty among the from owners. The Aquaculture Authority Bill also did not go beyond Rajya Sabha. Besides there was also major virus infection in a large number of farms. Hence production was low. "However the exports might have been more than the Marine Products Export Development Authority's estimate of Rs 1,200 crore," he told The Financial Express. During 1997-98 total fish exports fetched Rs 4,643 crore.
Sakthivel expects the new aquaculture Bill, likely to be presented in the Budget session of Parliament, to have provisions veryfavourable to the industry. According to him shrimp farming is one of the most profitable operations. From one hectare a farmer can earn more than Rs 4 lakh a year.
With the expected yield of one tonne a hectare at an average price of Rs 400 a kg of shrimp the owner stands to earn Rs 4 lakh for a single crop. He can take two crops a year. The total expenditure would not exceed Rs 2 lakh a crop. The net return will be Rs 2 lakh a crop and Rs 4 lakh a year.
In Tamil Nadu though some farms are still in operation, the opposition from NGOs are still vibrant and the district authorities also are not very helpful, he said. The new bill and amendments to Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification might make the scenario favourable to the industry, he said.
Sakthivel believes that the environmental issues of shrimp culture can be tackled scientifically and through proper monitoring. Early mistakes can be easily corrected and those should not be raised as reasons for killing an industry which can immenselycontribute to foreign exchange earning, employment and increasing the living standards of millions of poor people.
In the background of the looming sanctions about which the US and Japan, our major markets, are very serious, the export of marine products stands to offset many a loss, Sakthivel said.
Another major product segment outside the purview of sanctions is spices. The spices Board expects the exports to rise to Rs 1,718 crore this year from Rs 1,352 crore last year.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
