Jharkhand Launches Large-Scale Freshwater Prawn Farming to Meet Demand

Ranchi: Prawn lovers in city and across Jharkhand will soon be able to buy fresh prawns from local dams instead of relying on imports. After a successful pilot project in three dams, the Directorate of Fisheries launched the second phase of giant freshwater prawn farming in nine water bodies across the state.

As many as 23 lakh prawn seeds were released into the selected dams a week ago. These prawns, known scientifically as Macrobrachium rosenbergii, are expected to be fully grown and ready for sale by October this year. The directorate partnered with the ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute in Barrackpore, West Bengal to manage the project, as this specific type of prawn has excellent market prospects within the state.

The first phase of the programme began in 2022 in one dam each in Simdega, Hazaribag and Gumla, where 6 lakh seeds were released. Following the success over the years, the directorate has now expanded the programme to two dams in Ranchi (Karanji Dam in Bero and Opa Dam in Chanho) and one each in Lohardaga, Latehar, Dumka and Gumla, while continuing work in the original locations.

State fisheries director Amarendra Kumar said that Jharkhand has a huge market for prawns, but because local farming was not happening, they were imported from other states. The govt aims to bridge the demand and supply gap through this project.

During the first phase, around 5 tonnes of freshwater prawns were harvested, benefiting about 500 fish farmers. The prawns grown during that trial weighed between 90g and 400g each and were sold in local markets for between Rs 800 and Rs 1,000 per kg. Kumar added that if prawn farming continues to succeed in Jharkhand, it will substantially increase the income of local fish farmers.

“The second phase is expected to benefit at least 1,000 people, with a production target of at least 10 tonnes, but we are expecting more production,” Kumar said.

Because freshwater prawn farming is typically done in shallow waters, the directorate is currently focusing on dams. However, they have also put prawn seeds into a pond in Palamu as an experiment. Kumar said, “If rearing prawns works in ponds, the state will be able to significantly increase the number of water bodies used for this purpose, thereby increasing the number of beneficiaries.”

If this second phase proves successful, the directorate plans to roll out the project across every district in the state. While the prawns are currently being sold in local markets, the director said that once production increases, the state can begin exporting them.

The state already sends fish to Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Chhattisgarh, and these states are seen as prospective markets for Jharkhand’s prawns in the future.