Significant growth in Carp Fish Farming in Himachal Pradesh: CM

Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has said today that carp fish production in Himachal Pradesh has increased from 6,767.11 metric tonnes last year to 7,367.03 metric tonnes. He said that approximately 2,600 fishermen are currently involved in carp farming, and the increase in production is contributing to a steady rise in their income.

The Chief Minister said that the present State Government is providing high-quality fish seeds to fishermen, and there are seven government-run carp fish farms in the State. He said that the Fisheries Department has taken numerous measures to provide farmers with high-quality fish seeds. “In May 2024, the department procured improved Amur carp seeds from the National Freshwater Fish Brood Bank, Bhubaneswar. These seeds are being used to develop brood stock at Fish Seed Farm, Nalagarh in Solan district and Fish Seed Farm, Gagret in Una district. Farmers will have access to these superior-quality seeds from next year, which have a 20 percent higher growth rate compared to traditional species, leading to increased income for farmers,” he added.

Sh. Sukhu said that additionally, in June 2024, the department signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture, Bhubaneswar. Under this agreement, advanced seeds of Jayanti Rohu and Amrit Katla species have been made available. Brood stock for these species is being developed at Fish Seed Farm, Nalagarh, with the advanced seeds expected to be available to farmers within the next two years. These species have a 20-25 percent higher growth rate than traditional varieties and possess greater disease resistance.

“To enhance farmer training, the Fisheries Department has set-up a state-of-the-art training center at Gagret in Una district at a cost of Rs. 5 crore. The department is also establishing a carp fish brood bank at Nalagarh Carp Farm in the near future,” he said.

The Chief Minister said that to promote fish farming, the state government is providing an 80 percent subsidy for pond construction. So far, Rs. 1.38 crore has been released for the construction of ponds covering 14 hectares for farmers of the general category and an additional Rs. 59.52 lakh will soon be disbursed for constructing ponds over 6 hectares for farmers of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe categories. Under this scheme, a farmer can build a pond covering a maximum of one hectare, with the minimum pond size being 500 square meters. The department offers a subsidy of Rs. 49,600 for constructing a 500-square-meter pond and Rs. 9.92 lakh for a one-hectare pond.

Sh. Sukhu said that this scheme is being implemented in the eight districts of the State viz. Bilaspur, Mandi, Hamirpur, Kangra, Solan, Sirmaur, Chamba, and Una. The main fish species reared in these ponds include Rohu, Katla, Mrigal, Common Carp, and Grass Carp, all of which have high market value. Fishermen can earn an annual profit of Rs. 10.50 lakh by farming in one hectare of pond area, while even the smallest unit of 500 square meters can yield an annual profit of over Rs. 50,000.