Harvesting healthy crop from barren land

PANCHKULA, Feb 16: A valuable crop from sandy, stony, banjar land? Yes! Provided the ``crop'' has fins, gills and scales. Nisheeth Bhatt kno...

PANCHKULA, Feb 16: A valuable crop from sandy, stony, banjar land? Yes! Provided the “crop” has fins, gills and scales. Nisheeth Bhatt knows it can be done because he’s done it.

Through constant experimentation he learned how to convert barren land into a profitable commercial venture through fish-farming.

He has tested many techniques at his farm near Mauli village and now feels confident that he has hit upon the right technique … a “recipe” that integrates fish-farming with dairying and conventional agriculture. “I feel that I have a formula capable of tapping the potential of northern region and making it self-sufficient in meeting the demand for fish,” the 28-year-old fish-farmer says.

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The new techniques being developed by Nisheeth (the first Indian to get distinction at Alabama’s Auburn University) are scientific ways to turn conditions hostile for agriculture into conditions friendly for fish farming. His fish farm at Mauli is a paradigm of sorts as far as practical use of these techniquesis concerned.

The farm spreads over 7.5 hectare — land which was written off as non-productive because it was bisected by a seasonal stream and rainwater drain. This same “useless” acreage now exports so much fish to other states that it poses a threat to the West Bengal monopoly.

Here’s what he’s done:

Integration of fishery and agriculture: vegetables are grown on dykes and fed to the herbivorous carp; carp excreta nourishes the omnivorous fish and the waste of this fish is in turn used as manure. Water from the pond irrigates the fields.

Integration of fishery, poultry and dairy: Every day a dairy uses some 10,000 litres of water. The waste-water is drained into the fish-pond. Waste from the poultry unit, such as broken eggs and dead birds nourishes the carnivorous fish. (These are mainly catfish, a species with a high tolerance for effluents.)

The effluent and industrial waste treatment plant utilises state-of-the art technology which cuts power cost by 60 percent.

Multiple breeding of major carps (common in the warmer climes of West Bengal) has been achieved at Mauli in spite of the cooler temperatures in this part of the country. By regulating temperature and taking special care of their diet, it was possible to breed grass carp thrice in the same season.

For hobbyists, Bhatt has even come up with an attractive but hardy aquarium fish. He explains: “Aquarium fish is beautiful but very delicate, normally it does not live more than six months.” Bhatt crossed albino common carp (grey, hardy and a food fish) and coy carp (ornamental and delicate) to get a fish that is big and hardy and also beautiful.

Punjab Fisheries Director Dr S.C. Aggarwal says: “These techniques show a new direction to fishfarmers in the region. If put into practice, these can enable the region to become more than self-sufficient; it will be possible to export to other states.” Dr M.S.Johal of the Panjab University Zoology Department agrees but he has a word of caution: “Asfar as catfish is concerned there are chances of the scheme going awry. This particular omnivorous catfish species comes from Africa; if by mistake it escapes into natural waters, it can wipe out native species. This fish is under observation at present.” Notwithstanding the risk involved, the techniques evolved hold out a promise to those with wasteland to develop. Scientific fish-farming pays off handsomely.