The ongoing nationwide lockdown has dealt a death blow to the aquaculture industry in East Godavari district, with fish in 6,000 hectares on the verge of being harvested finding no takers.
Processing of prawn has also fallen from 650 MT per day to 130 MT per day at the 21 processing plants across the district by Sunday. A grinding halt in the supply of 600 million seeds in the 188 hatchers has further paralysed the industry within the past week in the district, which is home to one-third of the hatcheries in the country.
Deputy Chief Minister Pilli Subhash Chandra Bose is learnt to be leading the State government’s efforts to sort out hurdles related to manpower, as many workers have stopped coming to work. The government is also looking to sort out restrictions on transportation of seeds, feed and logistics, it is learnt.
“China, a major importer of shrimp from India, is believed to be willing to import the shrimp now. The problems in transportation and Export Inspection Agency clearances are being addressed on a war footing,” Mr. Bose said at a crucial meeting held with the hatchery firms, feed supply firms and exporters here on Sunday.
According to traders and export agents, nearly 30% of aqua production is exported to foreign countries while the rest of the production in the district is meant for the domestic market.
Mr. Bose and Social Welfare Minister P. Viswaroop on Sunday asked East Godavari Collector D. Muralidhar Reddy to persuade the workers to resume duty, as well as allowing transport activities to resume in order to bail out the industry. On Sunday, nearly 110 vehicles including 28 for feed supply have been permitted to ply across the State.
‘Bleak future’
Joint Director (Fisheries-East Godavari) Jaya Rao said that crop in 17,000 hectares (including whiteleg shrimp or ‘vannamei’), is in various stages of cultivation across the district. “The Export Inspection Agency, Visakhapatnam, has been sought to issue the health certificates for the exports through Visakhapatnam and Chennai ports,” Mr. Jaya Rao said.
Stakeholders such as owners of hatcheries and feed firms warned of a bleak future, adding that any further delay in speeding up the revival of the aquaculture activity would lead to a collapse of the industry, leaving them with insurmountable losses.
