'Facing diseases year after year': Andhra Pradesh faces aquaculture crisis as shrimp diseases trigger Rs 4000 crore annual loss; suffers massive yield declines
A study by the ICAR-Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture (Chennai) conducted between 2021 and 2023 estimates the state suffers annual shrimp-related losses of about 3,975 crore.
Beyond monetary losses, the state also records the country's highest productivity drop per metric tonne/hectare/crop. Average productivity losses reach 4.69 mt/ha/crop for EHP and 4.5 mt/ha/crop for WSSV, well above the national averages of 1.8 and 2.58 mt/ha/crop, respectively. Combined infections of EHP and WSSV further exacerbate losses for farmers in Andhra Pradesh, with affected farms averaging 4 mt/ha/crop, compared to Tamil Nadu's 3.43 mt/ha/crop and Gujarat's 2 mt/ha/crop.
Although WSSV has a higher national probability of occurrence (25%), EHP leads to greater economic losses in the state, primarily due to Andhra Pradesh's unusually high probability of disease occurrence (PDO) of 22% for EHP - almost three times its 8% PDO for WSSV.
Farmers and fisheries officials note that the persistence of EHP is compounded by its ability to remain latent in pond sediment and its resistance to commonly used disinfectants, making eradication especially difficult in traditional grow-out systems. M Satyanarayana Raju, an aqua farmer from East Godavari, said that shrimp farmers are grappling with relentless disease pressures. "We are facing these diseases year after year.
, he said.
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