Ornamental fish park on fast track

The Kerala government's plans to set up an export-oriented ornamental fish park are now on the fast track.

The state fisheries department has already identified 10 acres of land at Kadungalloor near the Kochi international airport to set up this first of its kind park in India and the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC), the nodal agency for implementing the project, has invited applications for appointing consultants.

The concept, known as aqua technology park (ATP), will have several fish breeding units within the precinct of a larger production and marketing complex.

The park will serve as a platform to promote production, conditioning and export of ornamental fish. It will also provide operators in this line of business with a ready-to-use site to establish marketing and export units.

The proposed model park will encompass a number of smaller units each having an area of 0.5 hectare. Besides having common facilities like water, electricity, laboratory and quarantine, the park will have attached satellite farms, which will produce large quantities of fish.

According to sources at KSIDC, the park will function as a hub for export of ornamental fish while the actual production of various types of fish will take place in the satellite farms and homesteads.

Private entrepreneurs will invest in the development of the sites identified by the aqua park for satellite farms. The fisheries department has already identified Neyyar dam in Thiruvananthapuram district and Pallom farm in Kottayam district for establishing satellite farms on a lease basis.

The government will set up a joint venture consisting of the department of fisheries, Fisheries Resources Management Society (Firma), KSIDC, IDBI or Small Industries Development Bank of India (Sidbi) and entrepreneurs who invest in the park and subsidiary satellite farms.

KSIDC will be the bid manager for the implementation of the entire project. As per the study conducted by the fisheries department at the proposed project site, the quality of water is ideal for an aqua park.

The ornamental fish business is one of the fastest growing businesses in the world and the total annual global market size is around $4.5 billion, in which India's share is very limited.

China is one of the major players in the area, while the market is growing fast in Europe, the Gulf region and Southeast Asian countries.

According to studies, the market is growing at 15-20 per cent on an average and there is a huge potential for states like Kerala. The Kerala government has organised three international aqua shows in the last five years.

Various studies have also identified Kerala as an ideal state for ornamental fishery to take off in a big way, thanks to environmental suitability, indigenous raw material availability and a well- developed fishing industry.