Farmer reaping fruit of integrated fishfarming
Source: Chronicle News Service / Sagolsem Bigyan
Imphal, December 19 2022:
Integrated farming or integrated fish farming is a practice of combining fish farming with other allied farming practices like agriculture and livestock farming for full utilisation of resources and increase production at lesser cost and labour.
It is not an uncommon practice among the farmer community but is rarely practiced in the state.
Laishram Brojen of Yumnam Huidrom Makha Leikai is one of the few farmers leading the way in integrated fish farming and showing to other farmers by combining fish farming with livestock farming at his farm of three sangams (approximately 1.8 acres) .
Talking to The People's Chronicle, Brojen informed that as his family has been in fish farming for generations he always took keen interest in the practice since childhood and yearned to learn more knowledge in the field.
He participated in an inland fishery training programme organised by the district fishery office, Imphal West at Lamphelpat in 1994-95.The training was a one-year diploma course.
After completing the course, he converted his farmland of three sangams into fish rearing ponds and began fish farming through induced breeding.
Recounting that he was able to produce spawns of almost all species of fishes available in the state, Brojen said in the first year earned a profit of Rs 2 lakh.
As his father passed away when he was young, the entire responsibility of his family fell Upon him and his fish farm has been a great source of income for his family, he narrated.
Brojen also confided that after learning about using cow faeces as feeds for fish, he started cattle farming in 2009 with seven cows which not only helped minimise cost of fish feeds but earned additional income by selling milk.
Stating that he gave up induced breeding from 2014 and focussed on fish production, the progressive farmer expressed elation that he could produce almost all types of fishes including indigenous species like Ngaton and Pengba.
Upon learning from some experts that faeces of rabbit could be used as fertiliser and fish feeds, he sold his cattle and started rearing rabbits from 2020 and now has over 100 rabbits of six species which he sells at the rate of up to Rs 15,000 per rabbit thereby making handsome profit from it too.
Further stating that the faeces of rabbit are not only used as fish feed but also as manure for his vegetable farm of over one sangam, Brojen informed that growing different types of seasonal vegetables and fruits brings him good profit.
From the three sources, he can easily earn an annual profit of around Rs 6 lakh and also able to provide jobs to some others, he said.
He also informed that he has not received any assistance from the government till date.
For many, Laishram Brojen has become a role model in integrated farming with his combined practice of fish, livestock and vegetable farming.
(This article has been published under Media Fellowship Programme in Scientific Journalism sponsored by Public Relation and Media Management (PRMM) Cell of the Central Agricultural University (CAU) Imphal.
For further information related with this article, please contact Dr Indira Thounaojam, Information and Publicity Officer, PRMM Cell, CAU through email id: [email protected] .