FISH BASED FARMING SYSTEMS FOR SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION AND INCOME GENERATION THROUGH INTEGRATED APPROACH

Nearly 65 % of the Indian population is dependent upon agriculture for their livelihood and employment. With the rise in conversion of productive agricultural lands for non-agricultural use because of industrialization and urbanization coupled with indiscriminate fragmentation of land holding due to population explosion, the farm holding size in India has been declining over years. Small farm holders including marginal (0.40 ha) and small (1.20 ha) category of farmers constitute more than 86 % of Indian farm families and are expected to increase to the level of 96% in coming three decades. To earn a reasonable livelihood from such a small land holding to meet the needs of a 5-6 member family and equal number livestock is a serious challenge. Throughout the developing world, resource-poor farmers located in risk-prone, marginal environments, remain untouched by modern agricultural technology. Moreover, the capital scarcity and the fragmented land holdings do not allow small and marginal farmers to adopt the modern technologies for various agricultural operations. Thus, the natural resources are deteriorating resulting in declined total factor productivity and profitability. Conventional approach has been to tackle these issues individually as and when they arise. However, there is a growing realization that these are essentially systemic problems linked to each other with complex matrix of agro-ecological and socio-economic processes. The income from seasonal field crops, from small and marginal farmland, is hardly sufficient to sustain the farmers family. Prevailing farming situation in India calls for an integrated effort to address the emerging issue. To enhance the farm productivity and reduce the environmental degradation viable option is integrating farming components requiring lesser space and time and ensuring a regular income to the farmer. This helps in utilizing the waste of one component as input of other. The integrated farming system approach is considered to be the most powerful tool for enhancing profitability of farming systems, especially small and marginal farm-holders. Integrated farming system with multi-enterprise (crops, animal husbandry, fisheries, apiary, horticulture, vermicomposting etc.) may pave the way for realizing increased productivity and profitability in small farms. To be of benefit to the rural poor the approach should be "bottom-up", using the resources already available: local people, their knowledge and their natural resources. It must also seriously take into consideration, through participatory approaches, the needs, aspirations and circumstances of smallholders. It must be applicable under the highly heterogeneous and diverse conditions in which smallholders live and must be environmentally sustainable. In this backdrop, Integrated Fish Farming (IFF) strategies could be regarded as an alternative for efficient utilization of available resources, waste recycling and

energy saving, and for maintaining ecological balance and circulation as fisheries sector has been playing an important role in Indian economy through employment generation, contribution to food and livelihood security and foreign exchange earnings through export. This sector provides livelihood to about 14.49 million people directly or indirectly involved. India is the 3rd largest producer of fish in the World and 2nd largest producer of freshwater fishes. What is Integrated Fish Farming (IFF)? Integrated fish farming includes fish, crop, livestock, horticulture, sericulture, poultry etc. The wise integration of these farming system enterprises promotes full utilization of land area, recycling of wastes and by-products, minimizes operational costs in feed and fertilizer and maintains a balanced ecosystem. Definition: Integrated fish farming systems refer to the production, integrated management and comprehensive use of aquaculture, agriculture and livestock, with an emphasis on aquaculture. Main Objective: Increase the productivity of water, land and associated resources while contributing to increased food fish production Basic Principles of IFF Basic principles of integrated fish farming systems is 3Rs
REDUCE

REUSE

RECYCLE

The fundamental ecological and economic principle embodied in integrated farming systems is that many outputs (wastes or by-products) of subsystems become basic inputs for other subsystems, rather than just additive components of the overall farm economy. A synergism is therefore created such that the total productivity of the system exceeds the sum of the individual subsystems. This results in higher yields for all

the commodities produced and a wider range of products than could otherwise be obtained per unit area. Under such system, main objective is to maximize the returns from the whole system than economic results from any single component. Integrated fish farming works in the following way: Trapping of solar energy and production of organic matter by primary producers. Utilization of primary producers by phagotrophs or tertiary consumers. Decomposition of primary producers and phagotrophs. Release of nutrients for producers The animal waste in water body enter the food chain in 3 different ways: As Feed: Direct utilization of organic materials coated with bacteria and other materials As Autotrophic production: Provides nutrients for micro-flora (autotrophs) As Heterotrophic production: Production of micro-fauna (protozoans and zoo planktons) Advantages of Integrated Fish Farming systems Artificial balanced ecosystem with no waste Increased food supply Increased output and economic efficiency More employment and improvement in the socio-economic status Multiple use of water Cost-effective use of available water resources Wider range of products Major Types of Integrated Fish farming Systems: (A) Integrated Agriculture and Aquaculture - Fish-crops integration, e.g. Rice-Fish system - Fish-Horticulture integration, e.g. Papaya, Banana etc on pond dyke - Fodder-Fish integration, Napier Grass on pond dyke (B) Integrated Aquaculture and Livestock - Fish-duck integration - Fish-cow integration - Fish-Pig integration - Fish-Poultry integration

(C) Integrated Agriculture, Aquaculture and Livestock - Fish-Duck-Vegetables/Crops/Fruit - Fish-Poultry-Vegetables/crops/Fruits - Fish-Cattle-Fodder grass etc. Limitations of Integrated System: Operated mostly on traditional way. Acceptance of certain commodities like pigs etc. Fish as well as livestock disease problem. Shortage of credit and working capital Eutrophication problem if not properly managed. Future Trends: Integrated farming plays a vital role in natural development as well as national economy. Increase of food supply is essential to cope with the growing need of the everincreasing population. Thus, more food is to be produced from the existing agricultural land in a sustainable manner for conversation of natural resource for future generations, and integrated farming system offers a possible solution. Research Needs: Although integrated farming is highly profitable, its practice remains very limited because of the lack of relevant scientific and technological information on diversification of methods. Therefore bridging of the gap between the information sources and the farmers is required, perhaps through extension services. A multi-disciplinary approach is needed, including technological, economic, social and political aspects, which are interrelated.