New farmers' training hall inaugurated at PAJANCOA & RI, Karaikal
The training hall is expected to boost the institute's extension education efforts and strengthen ties with the farming community.
Addressing faculty and final-year students during the inauguration, A. Pouchepparadjou, Dean of PAJANCOA & RI, thanked R.M. Sundaram, Director of ICAR-IIRR for his continued support in strengthening the institute's infrastructure and academic linkages.
N. Swaminathan, Professor of Agricultural Economics, R. Mohan, Professor and in-charge of the Engineering Cell, urged students to make full use of the new facility.
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Time of India
2 days ago
- Time of India
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Panaji: In a fruitful season, the jackfruit sale ended a few days ago, fetching a good price for farmers. The wet season starting early, rot disease, and other factors, however, caused some disappointment among the farmers. The bulky fruit's visibility — often called 'food of the future' — in market places and roadside stalls even diverted attention from mangoes. 'We almost had more jackfruits than mangoes. I even sold a bigger one for Rs 800 early in the season,' Swapnila Naik, a vendor at Neura said. The jackfruit tree is regarded as a 'kalpa vriksha', like the coconut tree, for its multiple uses. Its consumptive use as a food has massive potential. A hundred sweets, dishes and items can be prepared from it, according to experts, at various stages. Used as fodder for cattle and other purposes, it is gaining respect for its health benefits. Left to rot on trees once, the 'miracle food' however, was hit by climate change. 'This year, we lost 15 peak season days due to intense pre-monsoon rain and early monsoon arrival,' agriculture director Sandeep Faldessai said. In wet weather, rain water seepage may alter its taste and flavour. 'By end of summer, the fruit usually gets mostly consumed,' he said. The late flowering or fruiting, though it is not exactly due to climate change, eats into the farmers' profits. Consumers are wary of the water-soaked bulbs. But more brighter days in June slightly restored the demand. 'The prices dipped to Rs 500 per piece for bigger ones,' Naik, whose roadside house turns into a mango bazaar in summer, said. But rejuvenation of the monsoon in July saw the prices crashing again. 'Even the more popular 'kapo' variety went for Rs 100 per piece,' Naik said. The jackfruit continued to be sold till recently, as the green spiky package of bulbs is valued as an organic fruit. The ripening is without chemicals. Adapting a standardised technology developed by principal scientist Mathala Juliet Gupta and her team at ICAR-CCARI, Old Goa, for a ready-to-eat retort-processed jackfruit xacuti could help boost farmers' profits. Retort processing is a method of heat sterilisation used for food preservation. 'The xacuti stored in cans at room temperature has a shelf life of one year and in retort pouches six months. It has good customer acceptance,' Gupta said. Jackfruit processing, unlike Goa, is a multi-crore industry in some states, generating employment and many food products. The Centre has notified jackfruit as a crop for North Goa under One District, One Product (ODOP) scheme. Goa State Biodiversity Board's successful pilot project — a multi-fruit processing unit at Pale-Cotambi — paved the way for another one at Curchorem. 'Value addition of jackfruit and other produce is done at these centres,' an official said. A few problems, however, persist. Entrepreneurs have not shown much interest in processing. Harvesting jackfruits, even a worse problem than coconuts, becomes costly due to manpower and height of trees. 'Encouraging enterprise should be at the top of the agenda. A count and location of jackfruit trees for sourcing produce and integrating into commercial use are other aspects,' a source said. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Happy Krishna Janmashtami Wishes ,, messages , and quotes !
New Indian Express
06-08-2025
- New Indian Express
Marine fish landings in Andhra Pradesh drop by 8 per cent
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Time of India
05-08-2025
- Time of India
Marine fish landings in Andhra Pradesh decline amid heatwaves & cyclones
Visakhapatnam: Andhra Pradesh recorded 1.75 lakh tonnes of marine fish landings in 2024, marking an 8% decline from 2023 and a 19% drop from 2022. Notably, Indian mackerel was the most landed species in Andhra Pradesh at 32,490 tonnes, a surge of 76% compared to 18,490 tonnes, representing the highest landing in the past decade. Penaeid shrimp secured the second position with 12,320 tonnes landed. Meanwhile, Lesser sardines maintained their third-place ranking, showing a modest 3% recovery after a steep 72% fall in 2023. This trend was mirrored nationwide. India's marine fish landings experienced a marginal decline of 2%, decreasing from 35.3 lakh tonnes in 2023 to 34.5 lakh tonnes in 2024. The overall downturn was driven by reduced landings along the West Coast, whereas the East Coast saw growth. These were some key findings of the ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute's annual report 2024. Despite the decline in quantity, the value of marine fish landings in Andhra Pradesh was estimated at Rs 3,176 crore, reflecting a slight increase from Rs 3,162 crore in 2023. Similarly, at the retail level, the value of fish landings rose to Rs 4,507 crore from Rs 4,456 crore the previous year. Across India in 2024, marine fish landings were valued at Rs 62,702 crore at landing centres and Rs 90,104 crore at retail centres, registering increases of 4.22% and 8.46%, respectively. Within Andhra Pradesh, Kakinada district contributed the largest share at 40%, followed by Visakhapatnam at 22%. The newly operational Juvvaladinne fishing harbour in Nellore, which commenced operations in June 2024, accounted for 3% of landings among major harbours. According to the CMFRI report, environmental factors played a significant role in the decline of fish landings in Andhra Pradesh, with increased heatwave days and cyclones (Dana in Oct and Fengal in Nov), leading to notable drops in fourth-quarter catches. The rise in heatwave days, coupled with frequent weather disturbances in the Bay of Bengal, exacerbated the impact of these cyclones on both livelihoods and marine productivity. Turning to marketing efficiency, measured as the fishers' share of the consumer's rupee (FSCR), this varied across states for major species. Kerala recorded the highest efficiency at 71.59%, followed closely by Andhra Pradesh at 70.48% and Daman and Diu at 70.05%. In terms of fishing methods, multiday trawlers accounted for the major share of estimated landings in Andhra Pradesh at 47%, followed by motorised gillnetters (20.2%) and motorised ring seiners (19.9%). Other significant contributors included motorised hook and lines and non-motorised gears. Catch rates for single-day trawls reached 83 kg/hour, marking a significant increase from the previous year. Multiday trawls also saw an improved catch rate of 43 kg/hour. The highest catch per unit effort was observed in ring seines (886 kg/unit), followed by motorised hook and lines (380 kg/unit) and motorised gillnets (156 kg/unit). Artisanal (non-motorised) fishing gears had a catch rate of 91 kg/unit. An economic analysis of mechanised multiday trawlers was carried out by CMFRI for the Kakinada and Visakhapatnam harbours. In 2024, the average operating cost of a mechanised multiday trawl net in Kakinada was Rs 1,67,005, with an average gross revenue of Rs 1,91,117. Similarly, at Visakhapatnam, the operating cost was Rs 2,12,968, with average gross revenue amounting to Rs 2,31,669. For motorised single-day trammel nets and ring seines in Srikakulam district, the operating costs were Rs 30,675 and Rs 24,946 per unit respectively, with average gross revenues of Rs 59,242 and Rs 45,658. Non-motorised single-day gillnets in Vizianagaram district had an operating cost of Rs 4,631, generating an average gross revenue of Rs 9,165. It is noteworthy that the capital productivity of single-day fishing using non-motorised gillnets was efficient, with a lower operating ratio of 0.51 compared to other craft-gear combinations. Capital productivity ranged from 0.51 for non-motorised gillnets (single-day fishing) at the Bavanapadu landing centre in Srikakulam district, up to 0.88. Gross value added was highest for non-motorised gillnets operating in Srikakulam district, reaching 99%.
