The efforts of the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) to popularise cage fish farming technology has won recognition with a cage fish farmer associated with the institute bagging the ‘Thozhil Shreshta’ award instituted by the State Labour department.
Twenty-eight-year-old P.M. Dinil Prasad from Kannur, who won the award for his performance in the fisheries sector, has been undertaking cage fish farming under the guidance of the CMFRI. A communication from the CMFRI claimed he had been with the Indian Army before taking up cage farming.
When the CMFRI introduced a ₹15-crore project funded by the National Fisheries Development Board to set up 500 cage farming units in Kerala in 2018, Mr. Prasad was the first to receive a unit under the project and launched farming activities in the Anjarakandi river in Kannur.
Mr. Prasad has been selected for the award with a purse of ₹1 lakh and a citation for his tremendous achievement in cage fish farming with good harvest of pearl spot (karimeen) within a span of three-and-half years. It was made possible with regular training and guidance by the Mariculture Division of the CMFRI headed by Imelda Joseph, said the communication. At present, he undertakes farming of 7,000 pearl spots in seven cages of 4-metre and at least 150 kg of yield is expected from each of the cages, according to the communication.
