The waterlogged
fields of Kandhola village, situated along the Sirhind canal, have
turned into a blessing for the fish farmers. Housing the largest fish
farms in the district, at 136.96 hectares, the waterlogged fields have
converted into money minting fish farms.
For decades, the
area has been facing the problem of waterlogged fields, which are
unable to support any crop other than paddy.
In 1985, a farmer
Gurjitinder Singh Virk, from the royal family of Kandhola clan,
converted five acres of his land to a fish farm.
From five acres, he
has graduated to 35 acres and so have the farmers around him. “There
are more than 23 small and big fish farms around the village. Virk’s
farm has become an example for others to follow,” says assistant
director, department of fishery, Sukhwinder Singh.
Virk was recently
awarded for his achievements during the District-Level Republic day
celebrations. Virk said, “A farmer should not opt for fish farming
until he does not have minimum five acres of land. Even if the water
is present beyond 100 feet below the earth, the farmers should opt out
of fish farming. At Kandhola and nearby villages, even today, water is
found at mere three feet depth in the ground.”
“Even the area of
Malwa, situated along Rajasthan feeder, faces the problem of
waterlogged areas. But these are unfit for fish farming owing to the
saline water, which is more fit for prawn farming,” he suggests.
The fish farmers
manage to get 15 to 20 quintals of fish from each hectare per year.
The Fishery Department provides 1,000 seedlings for Rs 100, which are
an inch or two long. Farmers have the option to grow the seeds to
around six inches and then introduce them in pond. This ensures a
higher survival rate.
Assistant director
fishery Sukhwinder said six kinds of fish were cultivated in these
farms, including catla, rohu, mirgal, silver carp, common carp and
grass carp.
These fish are sold
in areas of Mohali, Khanna, Jalandhar and Ludhiana. The produce does
not even suffice the needs for kitchen purposes. “Despite heavy
produce, the farmers here are unable to meet with growing demands.
Need of the hour is to bring more fish farmers in the field,”
Sukwinder added.
