Fish farmer vows fresh Sareng this Ningol Chakkouba
Source: Chronicle News Service / Oinam Mission

Imphal, September 06 2022: Though it has been over a decade since the people have not experienced the taste of fresh local Sareng caught from rivers and lakes of the state, a fish farmer from Imphal West district is confident of making fresh Sareng available in the market this Ningol Chakkouba festival.

Chungkham Kopeshwar of Wangoi Makha Leikai has been rearing Sareng in his fish farm with a target of producing a minimum of 5000 kg of fresh Sareng on the occasion of Ningol Chakkouba festival, which falls on October 27.He had also released 2500 fingerlings imported from Myanmar with support from fisheries director Heisnam Balkrishna on Monday.

Despite fish being the most common dish among the people, the state spends huge sum of money in importing fish from other states as well as Myanmar to meet the demand in the local market.

At the same time, several indigenous fish species such as Ngamu, Ngakra, Ngakijou, Ngaton, Nganap are also on the verge of extinction.

Sareng is also one of the fish species, which have gone almost extinct.

Apart from being a favourite dish among the people, Sareng is often used in religious rituals, and in the absence of local production, people are buying imported Sareng.

Kopeshwar told The People's Chronicle that Sareng was available in plenty in the past but it has vanished since the past decade.

He tried to rear Sareng in 2018 but could not fulfil his dream back then.

His wife Nomita also consulted with the fisheries department and they started rearing Sareng from 2021 with support from the department.

Talking about the difference in rearing Sareng from other fish species, the farmer said that it does not require daily feeds.

Before releasing the Sareng fingerlings, he released around 30 sponges of Rohu, Pengba, Ngaton and Japan Puthi at the cost of Rs 500 per sponge.

They have now grown to around 2-3 inches and it will be enough for around 5000 Sarengs to feed.

In short, the entire cost of feed for the 5000 Sareng is Rs 15,000 only.

He released 510 Sareng fingerlings for the first phase last year and another 1500 fingerlings on August 30.He also released 2500 fingerlings on Monday and the total number of Sareng in his farm has grown to 4510.Those fingerlings released last year have now grown up to 2.5 to 3 kg, he said and added that he is confident of producing a minimum of 5000 kg of Sareng on the occasion of Ningol Chakkouba this time.

According to fisheries director Heisnam Balkrishna, the department, under the aegis of chief minister N Biren, took up the initiative to revive Sareng from last year by providing 50 per cent subsidy to select progressive farmers.

The idea behind the initiative is to revive local Sareng, which have gone extinct, and to save huge money spent on importing the fish species from other states.

The initiative is reaping success now and people of the state will definitely get fresh local Sareng on the occasion of Ningol Chakkouba festival, he said.

Regarding the selection of fingerlings, he said that they were procured from Bangladesh and Myanmar after consulting experts.

Importing from Bangladesh is a little costly since the consignment has to reach Imphal on cargo shipment through Kolkata.

As for the import from Myanmar, the consignment is brought from Yangon to Mandalay by flight and Mandalay to Imphal by road.

Fingerlings from Myanmar are more suitable for the state considering the similar weather and soil conditions, he said.

Some progressive fish farmers such as Chungkham Kopeshwar of Wangoi, Nilamani of Tentha and Rohendro of Laphupat Tera are rearing Sareng under the department's initiative.

Interested farmers can consult the department and other farmers, who have already got assistance under the initiative, for further details, he informed.

Mention may be made that chief minister N Biren released 2000 fingerlings of Sareng in August 2021 in the fish farm located inside the fisheries office campus and other areas as part of the revival policy of Sareng.

He also declared 50 per cent subsidy to progressive farmers for rearing Sareng under the initiative.

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