The Fisheries department in Odisha has cancelled a lease agreement for shrimp farming. The agreement was signed between the state government and a seafood export company in which over 400 acres of land was supposed to be used for shrimp farming. The land granted for shrimp farming is at the seaside Banapada village which is situated within the eco-sensitive zone of Bhitarkanika National Park.
According to The New Indian Express, a petition was filed by RTI activist Ranjan Kumar Das in 2016 in which he alleged that the state government illegally leased out around 400 acres of land to a seafood export company for farming. The area is located within the eco-sensitive zone of Bhitarkanika and the move also violates the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) and other laws. During the hearing, the Odisha Lokayukta was informed by the director of fisheries that the Fisheries department cancelled the lease agreement after the “rationalisation of the boundary” of Bhitarkanika by the Forest department in 2022. With this order from the Fisheries director, the Lokayukta closed the case.
How is shrimp farming affect the region?
The residents of the area told the New Indian Express that due to the release of untreated effluent from shrimp farms, the fertile agricultural land in the village has been damaged. The same area was known as “the rice bowl” of the region. With the introduction of farming in the region, it turned into a small island surrounded by shrimp farms. It is also threatening the nearby rich mangrove forests. Locals claimed that the land has lost its fertility and turned into barren land.
Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary
Famous for crocodile conservation and thick mangrove forests, the Bhitarkanika National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary is located in Kendrapara district in Odisha. After Chilika Lake, it is the second Ramsar site in Odisha and is also the second largest mangrove ecosystem in India. Gahirmatha Beach and Marine Sanctuary are to the east of the national park and is inundated by the rivers Brahmani, Baitarani, Dhamra, and Pathsala.
Shrimp industry in India
In 2020, PM Modi launched the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) for five years (2020-25), which also aims at increasing the production of shrimp and achieve a goal of producing 1.4 million tonnes by 2024. According to the Hindu Businessline, the government also reduced the import duty on certain input products for shrimp aquaculture from 30 % to 10 % to benefit farmers. Reports states, “the market attained a volume of 0.71 million tonnes in 2022 and it will grow at a CAGR of 9.5 per cent and reach 1.23 million tonnes by 2026.”
According to The Hindu, the US and China are the biggest importers of Indian Shrimp. India exported 8,93,644 tonnes of shrimp to the US in 2021, marking a 20 per cent growth. India’s major shrimp-producing states are Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. Significantly, over 95% of the cultured shrimp produced is exported.
