Agriculture has been the mainstay of India for centuries, almost 80% of the population at one time was involved in it and today almost 50 % of the population is engaged in it. The green revolution in North India brought with it the prosperity that demanded hard work and the North Indian Farmer was well equipped to handle for it. Soon mechanisation became the norm with tractors and harvesters seen around the countryside, the seventies and the eighties were the peak years of Indian agriculture which carried on till the wrong side of the eighties. Then came the depressions and pretty soon there was nothing to made out of the activity, the economy took a beating and for the next twenty years or so, till date the farmer has been turned to a pauper, the farmer suicide rate has gone up and its population is reeling under a severe cash crunch and unpaid loans that drive them to taking their own lives. The middlemen have become richer and without adequate safeguards from the government, the producer is languishing in poverty, the young generation has deserted the farm lands and made it to the crowded, criminal cities where their simplicity is misused and yet another cycle of exploitation occurs for the next generation.
In times like these, it would make sense for the farmer to be more focused and look for opportunities in specific areas that are more profitable and lucrative. I spoke to the Director of Marine Technologies of a large aquatic firm in India and here is what she had to say :
Farming of aquatic plants, clams and alligators is as yet an unexplored area in India, we are trying to promote the use of aquatic farms through the governmental agencies and private NGOs', however still a lot work needs to be done for the over-the-surface farmer to understand these technologies.
As I was to learn later, there was huge scope for aquatic plants provided the temperature was right and they could be grown in certain regions of the country. Clam farming as yet unheard of, was being propagated, I immediately tended to believe that there was potential in this, around the world farming clams has been around since the 1970's, clam production begins in hatcheries where the eggs are produced, there was a potential to produce 1 billion of these clam eggs every year if the government was to promote it. From the hatcheries or nurseries, the clams are taken in bags to be submerged into the sea and it would take, as I was told, about 16-18 months for the seed to hatch. Once this period was over the clams could be harvested and taken in cold storage trucks straight to the market place, the business model seemed great and I was wondering about the alligators, "what about them, and how could they help the farmer."
Alligators had once been hunted to the brink of extinction and only now around the world there were alligator farms, Orissa, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu in India, had taken the initiative as well and were promoting Alligator Farms. Alligator Farms generally begin with the acquirement of alligator eggs from the wild, permits are granted to the Alligator Farmers and it is hard and risky work. Then the eggs are hatched in incubators and further the Alligators are ready to be harvested in about 20 months. Alligator hides are much in demand for their fashion value and because each Alligator brings with it, its own distinctive pattern that cannot be matched by any other hide. Alligator meat is also in high demand as it gives high protein and low Cholesterol food and it is sold in niche restaurants and could be exported to around the world.
It seemed to me from the conversation that the plight of the farmers could be mitigated here provided they were smart enough to recognise an opportunity in aquaculture. It would require a paradigm shift and the government was here to help but most of all, it was important to get a conversation with the farmers going, for them to understand the importance of shifting from land based to sea based farming.
The business potential from the sea is enormous, its the thought the precedes everything though.
In times like these, it would make sense for the farmer to be more focused and look for opportunities in specific areas that are more profitable and lucrative. I spoke to the Director of Marine Technologies of a large aquatic firm in India and here is what she had to say :
Farming of aquatic plants, clams and alligators is as yet an unexplored area in India, we are trying to promote the use of aquatic farms through the governmental agencies and private NGOs', however still a lot work needs to be done for the over-the-surface farmer to understand these technologies.
As I was to learn later, there was huge scope for aquatic plants provided the temperature was right and they could be grown in certain regions of the country. Clam farming as yet unheard of, was being propagated, I immediately tended to believe that there was potential in this, around the world farming clams has been around since the 1970's, clam production begins in hatcheries where the eggs are produced, there was a potential to produce 1 billion of these clam eggs every year if the government was to promote it. From the hatcheries or nurseries, the clams are taken in bags to be submerged into the sea and it would take, as I was told, about 16-18 months for the seed to hatch. Once this period was over the clams could be harvested and taken in cold storage trucks straight to the market place, the business model seemed great and I was wondering about the alligators, "what about them, and how could they help the farmer."
Alligators had once been hunted to the brink of extinction and only now around the world there were alligator farms, Orissa, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu in India, had taken the initiative as well and were promoting Alligator Farms. Alligator Farms generally begin with the acquirement of alligator eggs from the wild, permits are granted to the Alligator Farmers and it is hard and risky work. Then the eggs are hatched in incubators and further the Alligators are ready to be harvested in about 20 months. Alligator hides are much in demand for their fashion value and because each Alligator brings with it, its own distinctive pattern that cannot be matched by any other hide. Alligator meat is also in high demand as it gives high protein and low Cholesterol food and it is sold in niche restaurants and could be exported to around the world.
It seemed to me from the conversation that the plight of the farmers could be mitigated here provided they were smart enough to recognise an opportunity in aquaculture. It would require a paradigm shift and the government was here to help but most of all, it was important to get a conversation with the farmers going, for them to understand the importance of shifting from land based to sea based farming.
The business potential from the sea is enormous, its the thought the precedes everything though.
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