CIFRI Awards
Guwahati, Assam
An MOU was signed between ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute (CIFRI), Barrackpore and Project Management Unit (PMU) and Project Implementation Unit (PIU) of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) financed Assam Sustainable Wetlands and Integrated Fisheries Transformation Project (SWIFT) on 26th February, 2026. As per the MOU, ICAR-CIFRI will provide Technical Service on 'Sustainable Development and Management of Beel Fisheries including Enhancement of Fish Production and Productivity' in Assam. The project duration is of 24 months with a budget of Rs. 2.88 crore. On behalf of ICAR-CIFRI, Dr. Basanta Kumar Das, ARS, Director of the Institute; on behalf of PMU, SWIFT, Shri Virendra Mittal, IAS, State Project Director, ARIAS Society, Assam and on behalf of PIU, SWIFT, Shri Gauri Shankar Das, ACS, Director of Fisheries, Assam were the signatories in the MOU. The MOU was signed in the august presence of Sunae Kim, ADB Project Team Leader; Ji Seon Kim, ADB Team Member, besides a host of other officials from ADB; ICAR-CIFRI; ARIAS Society, Assam and project team members of ADB-SWIFT.
The scope of work and tasks to be carried out by ICAR-CIFRI under the project include-strengthening capacity of DoF to deliver technically sound advisory services that promote sustainable beel ecosystem management, specifically on sustainable fisheries and production practices; Strengthening capacity of community/ beel development committees (BDCs) to implement sustainable fisheries production and beel management practices; and undertake scientific/research of beel fisheries productivity enhancement, which includes implementing routine and scientifically rigorous monitoring of fisheries production within the project area (Beels), integrating research-based methodologies to assess ecological health, productivity trends, and sustainability indicators. The key activities to be carried out by ICAR-CIFRI includes, monitoring of water quality parameters of beels (wetlands); recommending strategies and guidelines for fish production enhancement in beels; conservation and production enhancement of small indigenous fishes and biodiversity monitoring. A total of 100 beels will be studies under the project.
