The novel coronavirus outbreak that has spread from China’s Wuhan has left the crab export economy in East Midnapore, West Bengal, India, poorer by tens of crores of rupees.
The Bengal district that has a nearly 100km coastline exports more than Rs 100 crore worth of crabs and Rs 2,000 crore worth of prawns internationally every year. A bulk of the crabs’ consignment is sent to China during the Lunar New Year festive season.
But in the wake of the deadly virus outbreak in China, East Midnapore’s crab exports have come to a halt impacting local farmers’ incomes by more than 50 per cent.
January-February is the peak export season for crabs, said a district fisheries department official on Wednesday, explaining that at least 30 per cent of crab exports take place over these two months.
Major Chinese festivals take place during this time, so the demand is high because crabs are a delicacy. Not this year, however, he added.
District officials said that although no official instruction had been issued by the shipping ministry regarding freezing commerce with China, traders had themselves taken such a decision over the past couple of weeks in light of the rising number of coronavirus cases.
Although the crab economy has taken a severe hit, sources said the local prawn export business was doing slightly better owing to the presence of other buyers in the market. There are several interested countries other than China, said exporter Kamdev Jana.