Abstrakt
The development of composite culture of carps in Purulia, an economically underdeveloped district of India, is confronted with several socio-economic, topographic, and climatic challenges. West Bengal Accelerated Development of Minor Irrigation Project (WBADMIP), an innovative integrated program of irrigation, agriculture, horticulture, and fisheries interventions through community institutions, was implemented in Purulia by the Government of West Bengal and was supported by the World Bank. Performances of the composite culture of carps in 172 water bodies by fisheries interest groups under the initiatives of WBADMIP were evaluated based on 18 different parameters using the k-mean algorithm. The results indicated that the water bodies could be categorized into three Clusters, based on inputs, expenditure, production, and income. Cluster 1, consisting of 85 water bodies, exhibited moderate performance with an average production of 2351 kg/ha, followed by Cluster 2 of 49 water bodies exhibiting poor performance with an average production of 1463 kg/ha, and Cluster 3 of 38 water bodies exhibiting best performance with an average production of 2488 kg/ha. Euclidean distance between Cluster centers 1 and 2 was 4.511 as compared to 3.737 and 5.102 between the Cluster centers 1 and 3 and 2 and 3, respectively. The water bodies with higher productivity were primarily associated with the WBADMIP policy that mobilized trained farmers who could adequately manage the application of feed, lime, inorganic fertilizers, and organic fertilizers. Using decision tree analysis, we predicted that the maintenance of water pH above 6.9 is crucial in obtaining optimum carps production from these water bodies. In contrast, the use of lime, inorganic fertilizers, organic fertilizers, and an adequate amount of feed need to be adjusted to maintain an economically viable production system. It is concluded that the farmers' motivation and professional training along with project support can substantially improve the productivity of the water bodies, support the nutrition of the farmers' community, and boost the local economy.
| Originalsprog | Engelsk |
|---|---|
| Artikelnummer | 737018 |
| Tidsskrift | Aquaculture |
| Vol/bind | 544 |
| ISSN | 0044-8486 |
| DOI | |
| Status | Udgivet - 15 nov. 2021 |
Bibliografisk note
Funding Information:We are thankful to the World Bank (Project ID-P105311) for promoting the implementation of the composite culture of carps as part of the project intervention carried out by WBADMIP in Northeast Purulia. We are also thankful to the Project team in Purulia for their integrated efforts in the study area, especially on the fishery.
Funding Information:
Purulia is a backward district of West Bengal, India, in terms of socio-economic development and exhibits the highest incidence (26%) of poverty in the state ( Chandra, 2021 ). Poverty is determined not only by the lack of income and resources to ensure a stable livelihood, but also by social discrimination, limited access to safe drinking water, fuel, education, sanitation, health facilities, and malnutrition. The socially backward groups constituting about 38% of the population in the district, as per Census Report, 2011 ( https://www.census2011.co.in/ ), are the worst sufferer of poverty, followed by the daily wage and agricultural laborers ( Guchhait and Sengupta, 2020 ).Usage of groundwater in many district blocks is significantly less, and a significant portion of the population has to depend on surface water or dams for their water requirements ( Bera and Das, 2021 ). A sample survey of 698 households spread over four community development blocks and three municipalities in Purulia was conducted by Bagli and Tewari (2019) . The authors reported that only 15% of the households had access to formal health facilities, 27% had primary education, 22% had improved sanitation, and only 31% enjoyed banking facilities. The multidimensional poverty index of Purulia (0.21) measured by the authors was almost double that of India (0.121) in 2018. More than 70% of district households belong to rural areas ( Government of India, 2015 ; Daripa, 2018 ). The economy of the farming communities depends mainly on single-crop agriculture production. A substantial portion of this population belongs to below poverty level and suffers from malnutrition ( Arora et al., 2014 ; Mishra and Chatterjee, 2018 ). The development of a viable composite carp culture system in Purulia is a tough challenge not only for the poverty of the people, which refrain most of them to buy necessary inputs to start a culture of fish, but also for the extreme climatic condition characterized by seasonal drought, undulated topography, and dependency on monsoon for the supply of water ( Haldar and Saha, 2015 ). Efficient management of groundwater and surface water is thus critical to alleviating the sufferings of people of this district, particularly during the summer months, when water shortage is acute. During the last ten years, the Government of West Bengal implemented several socio-economic development schemes for sustainable water resource management of the district. These include: (1) “USHARMUKTI”– a micro-watershed scheme under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), supported by the Government of India to conserve soil and water in Purulia and to benefit about 500,000 households ( Bera and Das, 2021 ) (2) The Jal Dharo-Jal Bharo (JDJB) scheme for the construction of small check dams and re-digging and reclamation of small and large water bodies ( http://wbwridd.gov.in/wrdd/jal_dharo_jal_bharo.html ) (3) The “Jalatirtha” scheme ( Bera and Das, 2021 ) with an objective of construction of 500 check dams in the districts to provide water for irrigation in the Rabi season as well as for supplying water to the cattle, fishery activities and other various domestic uses ( http://wbwridd.gov.in/wrdd/jalathirtha.html ). Besides, Watershed Management Programme ( http://www.wbswda.gov.in/dprs/index /s: 90), “Anandadhara” ( http://wbprd.gov.in/anandadhara/index.aspx ), etc. were implemented by different departments of the Government of West Bengal for micro watershed development and capacity building of the rural farmers. These schemes substantially promoted water conservation and opened up opportunities for agriculture, horticulture, and fisheries in vast areas of the district. Yet, the farmers could not be motivated to successfully develop any culture system due to a lack of scientific knowledge, training, and financial capacity. Then the West Bengal Accelerated Development of Minor Irrigation Project (WBADMIP), a flagship project of the Government of West Bengal, started in 2012 in Purulia intending to identify socially and economically backward section of people and train them to start profitable agriculture, horticulture, and fisheries in potentially viable areas. This project was partially funded by the World Bank and was implemented through the water resources investigation and development department (WRIDD) of the Government of West Bengal ( wbadmip.org ). Parallelly, World Bank supported the institutional and financial capacities of the gram panchayats, the rural local government, through the West Bengal Institutional Strengthening of Gram Panchayats Program ( https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/P159427 ) and Japan International Cooperation Agency ( https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/linked-docu ments/49107–006-dc.pdf) supported West Bengal piped water supply project to provide safe and adequate piped water supply to people living in nine blocks of the Purulia. These projects improved the livelihood conditions of the people of Purulia and indirectly helped the implementation of WBADMIP programs in this district.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Author(s)