Faiza Tehseen

Cage fishing has become a regular practice worldwide to harvest fish from cages as and when needed.By using the existing water bodies and comparatively low capital and simple technology we can help promote cage or pen fish culture. Introducing and promoting this type of fish farming in Pakistan will help ensure food security and improve economic conditions of farmers.

Discussing the importance and promotion of cage fishing culture in Punjab province, the fisheries department’s director general Dr Sikandar Hayat said the department is promoting the non-conventional ways of fish farming, like integrated fish farming, biofloc fishing technique, cage fishing, etc. “Fish varieties like prawns, lobsters, etc can also be reared on a considerable scale through these techniques.

To achieve this, regular training sessions are held at different places to facilitate farmers in starting the fish farming on modern lines and boosting their production. The farmers are made aware that like poultry and cattle farming, fish farming is also a profitable business.” He said seafood is not only a source of nutritious meal but also a good income-generating source.

Sikandar Hayat said the Punjab fisheries department is also offering subsidised packages to promote aquaculture in the province. He said cage farming was one of the most beneficial and easy-to-handle fishing techniques. The Gilgit-Baltistan government is also working to promote the rearing of trout through cage aquaculture. The department has also erected about 1,000 cages in different locations across the province, adding 500 more cages would be set up next year. Setting up 3,500 fish cages is the department’s target.

Enumerating the steps taken to promote cage fishing, Dr Shaista Waqar, an assistant director of the fisheries department, said her department has launched the cage fish culture development programme 2022-23, under which, 330 cages would be set up in different places.

She said a farmer in Rawalpindi could contribute Rs800,000 to erect a cage in a small dam; Rs850,000 for Attock, Jhelum and Chakwal, and Rs900,000 for headworks/pond areas and lake. She said the department is also training farmers to help promote cage fish farming. “We are hopeful that our efforts will pay off, and the cage fish farming will soon be the most active sector in the country,” Shaista Waqar said.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk