Farmers’ meeting dwells on management of fish health

A monthly meeting of the Innovative Fish Farmers Association (IFFA) of Punjab was held at the College of Fisheries (COF), Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana. Fish farmers from across the state participated in the meeting during which they were briefed on management practices for maintaining fish health during the winter season, said Dr Vaneet Inder Kaur, university’s IFFA coordinator.

Dr JPS. Gill, Vice Chancellor, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, emphasised on the importance of fostering strong and proactive connections between stakeholders, farmers and industry for successful technology transfer through such meetings.

Dr Meera D Ansal, Dean, COF, urged the farming community to actively participate in such meetings for technical updates, experience sharing and feedback, which drive problem-solving research of regional relevance.

The technical session, coordinated by Dr Khushvir Singh, included a talk by Dr Naveen Kumar on fish health management, focusing on disease outbreaks caused by temperature drops. Mamta Sharma, Fisheries Officer, Fish Farmer Development Agency (FFDA), Ludhiana, discussed new initiatives and schemes launched by the Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying, Government of India.

She highlighted recently introduced “Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-Yojana (PM-MKSSY)” and encouraged farmers to register on the National Fisheries Digital Platform (NFDP) for updates on various beneficiary schemes. All participating farmers were registered on the NFDP during the meeting.