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Training-cum-exposure visit for the farmers of Mayurbhanj and Kendujhar districts, Odisha, on "Inland Fisheries Management”.

8^th November, 2024
Mayurbhanj district is in the northeast corner of the state of Odisha, and the Budhabalanga River flows through it, while Kendujhar is a landlocked district in the northern part of Odisha and mainly drained by the river Baitarani with numerous tributaries. Both the Mayurbhanj and Kendujhar districts have enough potential for fish culture as several rivers and tributaries flow in and around.

A five-day training-cum-exposure visit program on "Inland Fisheries Management" was conducted for fish farmers of Mayurbhanj and Kendujhar districts of Odisha from November 4-8, 2024, following their viewing of the possible water resources. The program, which was sponsored by the state fishery department of Odisha, sought to improve the knowledge and abilities of rural farming communities. Thirty fish farmers in all, including two assistant fisheries officers (AFO), took part in the training program to learn how to raise fish culture's profitability, sustain livelihoods, and maximize output.
The program was inaugurated by the director of ICAR-CIFRI. He underlined in his inaugural speech that to secure their sustainable means of livelihood, fishermen must increase their understanding of inland fisheries management. Dr. Samanta also provided the trainees with an outline of the latest economic opportunities in the inland fisheries sector.
The growth of inland aquaculture in both the Mayurbhanj and Kendujhar Districts of Odisha has a lot of potential for better livelihoods. ICAR-CIFRI aimed to bridge the farmers' gaps in understanding, proficiency, and perspective about the management of inland fisheries through this training program. Aspects of the fisheries sector that were covered in the course included pond construction and management, water quality management, nurseries and rearing ponds management, composite fish culture, natural fish food organisms in inland open waters, induced fish breeding and hatchery management, fish disease management, fish feed management, socio-economic and governance pattern in inland fisheries sector, economic evaluation of fisheries enterprise, participatory problem identification for improving fish production in Odisha, etc.

The trainees were taken to the East Kolkata wetland and Halisahar fish farm as part of their exposure tours to the field. Along with receiving hands-on training in a multitude of need-based subjects, such as basic water quality parameters, preparing fish feed using locally sourced ingredients, identifying fish pathogens and appropriate remedies, etc., they were also exposed to the Institute's Recirculatory Aquaculture System (RAS), Bio-floc units, ornamental hatchery units, and feed mill.
The benchmark for the feedback session was the trainees' overall satisfaction with their newly acquired knowledge, which they promised to use for their own water resources. In his final remarks, the director of the institute, suggested that the farmers combine greater outputs using the knowledge they had gained from this training program. The training program was coordinated by Drs. Dibakar Bhakta and Pritijyoti Majhi, with assistance from Mr. Sujit Choudhury, Dr. Avishek Saha, and Mr. Manabendra Roy.