Arabinda Das

• Ph.D.
• Researcher at ICAR - Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture

The barred spiny eel, Macrognathus pancalus, is a high-value food fish with significant market demand but limited aquaculture due to the absence of a defined culture protocol. Health monitoring is crucial for early disease detection, risk assessment, and optimizing rearing conditions and disease management. Hence, this study evaluated the health st...

Small indigenous fish species (SIS) are a rich source of essential nutrients, including proteins, vitamins, and minerals, making them a vital component of rural diets. Despite their nutritional significance, SIS are often undervalued and excluded from aquaculture in favor of larger commercial species. This study highlights an initiative by ICAR-CI...

An eight-month study (May to December 2022) was conducted to evaluate the reproductive traits of Amazon sailfin catfish Pterygoplichthys pardalis in relation to the nutrient contents (nitrogen and phosphorus) of the invaded sites of East Kolkata Wetlands (EKW), India. Over the study period, a total of 608 adult specimens of the fish and 120 water s...

The prevalence of sailfin catfishes (Pterygoplichthys spp.) in inland waters, including vast aquaculture systems of India is rising. This might be a serious threat to the country’s native freshwater biological resources and aquaculture production. Therefore, studies were carried out to evaluate the impact of Amazon sailfin catfish Pterygoplichthys...

Successful aquaculture mainly depends on the provision of quality seed and feed. Initial stage of larval rearing is very delicate and critical, and due to improper supply of nutritional balanced feed, their survival gets affected. Live feeds are used during initial rearing, but they are sometimes not nutritionally balanced, and they require a separ...

Background: The objective of the study was to examine the growth and development of M. pancalus larvae in captive conditions, including pigmentation patterns, yolk and oil globule utilization, growth rates and metamorphosis, as well as to identify suitable live food for larviculture. Methods: The larvae, produced through induced breeding, were kept...

Livelihood improvement of Scheduled Caste fish farmers of Sonarpur block of South 24 pargans of West Bengal, India though intervention of Scientific Aquaculture.

Photoperiod manipulation is emerging as an effective approach for regulating physiological functions in fish. This study aimed to assess the impact of photoperiod on the growth performance, haematological responses, and economic returns of the endangered and highly valued Indian butter catfish, Ompok bimaculatus. Fish with an average body weight of...

The striped spiny eel, Macrognathus pancalus, is a bottom-dwelling fi sh belonging to the family Mastacembelidae under the order Mastacembeliformes. Indigenous to India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Nepal (Pathak et al. 2012), this species inhabits rivers, canals, beels, karanjali, tanks, ponds, paddy fi elds, and wetlands. Often r...

Invading sailfin catfish Pterygoplichthys spp. in East Kolkata Wetlands (EKW), India were studied for their length-weight relationship (LWR), condition factor and reproductive characteristics covering pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon seasons. Using seine nets, fish samples were taken every month from May to December 2022 from five distinct EKW...

The growth and development of Naihati fish market seems promising, vibrant and sustainable. The market is unique because of a diverse group pf professionals including fishery, management, research,academics, traders are involved in seed trade. Facilities and amenities that Naihati market maintains are both attractive and customers are trade friendl...

The infestation of freshwater fish lice belonging to the genus Argulus occur repeatedly in freshwater fish farms due to poor management practices. Preventative methods and regular monitoring often fails to control the outbreak, and in tum chemical interventions become necessary. In the present study, the outbreak of freshwater fish lice Argulus in...

This study highlights a transfonnative initiative in the villages of Saheberabad I & II and Baburabad, located in South 24 Parganas, West Bengal, aimed at enhancing livelihoods and fostering entrepreneurship among marginalized communities. The region primarily relies on agriculture, with limited cultivable land and scarce irrigation facilities. Two...

Moyna of Purba Medinipur district is widely known as an aquaculture hub of West Bengal, India. Though very good production is achievable from this fish culture system, management practices are inappropriate, which could create the sustainability problem of this culture system. The present study was thus undertaken for the estimation of plankton pop...

This work is basically on Livelihood development of Rural People Sonarpur block of South 24 Parganas, West Bengal, India. The people were benifitated withscientific intervention of Aquaculture practices.

Tenualosa ilisha popularly known as ‘Hilsa’ is one of the most commercially important euryhaline food fish species in South Asian countries. Co-infection of Fusarium incarnatum FHHS2 and Acinetobacter bohemicus FHHK1 was reported for the first time in captive-reared pre-adult T. ilisha (average length 22.30 ± 0.92 cm and weight 93.48 ± 28.06 g) tha...

Hilsa culture in Freshwater pond after boat breeding in river.

Due to the market instability and increasing demand and prices of fishmeal, the aquafeed industry must seek alternative protein feedstuffs to keep producing aquafeeds in a sustainable and cost-effective way. Hermetia illucens (BSF) larvae meal is considered sustainable since its production recycles organic waste streams into a valuable nutrient. Th...

The present study depicts the disease incidences in the aqua farms of Moyna, West Bengal, India, during 2018-2020 and aqua-drugs used by farmers to combat diseases. A total of 132 fish disease incidences were reported, among which parasitic diseases were the most common (53.03%) followed by bacterial diseases (27.27%), diseases due to poor nutritio...

The present study depicts the disease incidences in the aqua farms of Moyna, West Bengal, India, during 2018- 2020 and aqua-drugs used by farmers to combat diseases. A total of 132 fish disease incidences were reported, among which parasitic diseases were the most common (53.03%) followed by bacterial diseases (27.27%), diseases due to poor nutriti...

Hilsa, Tenualosa ilisha is a fascinating food fish. Its charming lustre, culinary flavour and medicinal importance make it a favourite of the people of West Bengal, India and Bangladesh in particular. However, it has complex habitat requirements, migrating between marine, estuarine and riverine waters. Usually, adults mature in the sea, and then ve...

Hilsa shad, Tenualosa ilisha, a euryhaline fish species, undertakes long migrations crossing diverse water bodies from river to sea to fulfil its life cycle. To culture hilsa in captivity, one important factor among others is to rear larvae up to fry stage in freshwater. Chlorella is one of the best of a few microalgae well accepted by Hilsa larvae...

The catfish Ompok bimaculatus (butter catfish) has recently gained importance as an aquaculture candidate species because of its delicious taste, higher nutritional value and market demand. A significant problem in butter catfish aquaculture is its inability to voluntarily spawn in captivity. This experiment was conducted to study the impact of pho...

The paper deals with Livelihood improvement through Aquaculture of Scheduled Caste Farmers of Kultali Block of West Bengal ,India

The Indian butter catfish, Ompok bimaculatus (Bloch, 1794), is a high-value catfish that has gained immense consumer preference in South-East Asia. However, information on the nutritional requirements of this species is scanty. Hence, an experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of varying dietary lipid levels on growth, body composition, an...

The Indian butter catfish, Ompok bimaculatus (Bloch, 1794), is a high-value catfish that has gained immense consumer preference in South-East Asia. However, information on the nutritional requirements of this species is scanty. Hence, an experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of varying dietary lipid levels on growth, body composition, an...

Sailfin armoured catfish (Pterygoplichthys spp.), an alien invasive species of family Loricariidae has invaded extensively in wastewater-fed large aquaculture ponds (locally called 'bheries') of East Kolkata Wetlands (EKW), West Bengal, India. As there is no viable controlling method at present, commonly these fishes are removed by different physic...

The length weight relationships of six Nemacheilid species Schistura chindwinica (Tillak & Hussain, 1990), Schistura fasciata Lokeshwor & Vishwanath, 2011, Schistura khugae Vishwanath and Shanta, 2004, Schistura minuta Vishwanath & Shanta Kumar, 2006, Schistura reticulata Vishwanath & Nebeshwar Sharma, 2004 and Schistura rubrimaculata Bohlen & Ŝlec...

A 22 d experiment was carried out to study the protein requirement of Ompok bimaculatus larvae (weight 0.11±0.01 g; length 20.49±0.70 mm). Three different formulated feeds were prepared with graded levels of crude protein i.e., with low (35% CP; LP), medium (40% CP; MP) and high (45% CP; HP) crude protein levels. The water quality parameters were o...

The proximate and fatty acid composition of Ompok bimaculatus (pabda) brood fish, egg and larvae were assayed to have an insight of the nutrient metamorphosis during early life of the species visa -vis parental nutrient composition. The collected brood fish, eggs and larvae were analyzed for proximate and fatty acid composition. The data revealed t...

Tenualosa ilisha popularly known as 'Hilsa' - a commercially important high valued food fish for its delicious taste, immense nutritional values for human health and high preference to the consumers across the South Asia, has received much attention for culture in confined waters and as a component under species diversification in aquaculture, sinc...

Hilsa shad, Tenualosa ilisha has received much attention for their conservation through culture. Transportation mechanism of eggs and larvae is one of the major bottlenecks of hilsa culture. The present study aims to find out the best transporting system, stocking density (SD) and early life stages that record maximum survival after transport neede...

The problem of sewage disposal has received great attention worldwide. The raw sewage contains a variety of high inorganic and organic matters that affect natural water environment. To mitigate such problem, sewage may be recycled through aquaculture practice. Sewage recycling in aquaculture enhances water productivity through nutrients input. Prop...

Portable Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) pabda hatchery consisting of three incubation pools and three rearing tanks having capacity to accommodate about 45,000 - 50,000 nos. fertilized eggs and to produce about 10,000 – 15,000 nos. of early fry of Ompok bimaculatus (pabda) in a single cycle was developed, established and operated at Kalyani Fi...

The world's appetite for fish is growing steadily. Aquaculture has bridged that gap between the growing demand for fish and the almost stagnated wild fish catch, contributing at present nearly 47% of the world's total fish production of 171 million tonnes. Global aquaculture production has almost doubled between 2000 and 2016, it is estimated that,...

The world's appetite for fish is growing steadily. Aquaculture has bridged that gap between the growing demand for fish and the almost stagnated wild fish catch, contributing at present nearly 47% of the world's total fish production of 171 million tonnes. Global aquaculture production has almost doubled between 2000 and 2016, it is estimated that,...

Rapid spread and population increase of suckermouth armoured catfishes belonging to the genus Pterygoplichthys (Loricariidae) in the East Kolkata Wetlands (EKW) in recent times is of increasing concern, because of the notable possibility that these non-native catfishes are adversely affecting fish germplasm and commercial fishery of this unique eco...

Aim: The present study was undertaken to find out the possibilities of induced breeding of Catla catla, at low water temperature using fibre reinforced (FRP) tanks in a carp hatchery. Methodology: Brood fish of C. catla was maintained in 0.1 ha pond with proper feeding and pond management. Six induced breeding programmes: 3 in April (pre-monsoon) a...

Aquaculture is an important economic activity and a flourishing sector in India with varied resources and vast potentials, growing at the pace of 4.5% annually, contributing to national income, employment generation and foreign exchange. Sundarbans, the world’s largest delta is a globally recognised ecologically sensitive area of West Bengal. This...

Better survival and growth of larval stages of fish is the most important objective of any fish hatchery. The present study aimed to assess the effect of feeding a freshwater cladoceran Moina micrura as live food enriched with HUFA, vitamin C or both on survival and growth of climbing perch Anabas testudineus larvae. Three days old larvae were rand...

Unauthorized introduction of South American suckermouth armoured catfishes (Loricariidae) of the genus Pterygoplichthys into the waste water bheries of East Kolkata Wetland, West Bengal has led to their noticeable naturalization in this ecosystem. A total of 439 specimens collected during this study were externally evaluated for affirming the speci...

Unauthorized introduction of South American suckermouth armoured catfishes (Loricariidae) of the genus Pterygoplichthys into the waste water bheries of East Kolkata Wetland, West Bengal has led to their noticeable naturalization in this ecosystem. A total of 439 specimens collected during this study were externally evaluated for affirming the speci...

The state Mizoram witnessed good growth in aquaculture in recent years and has potential for improvement in production of fish with its endowed resources. The present paper is an attempt to analyze the status of aquaculture in the state of Mizoram and draw future strategies for improvement. The state has 5400 ha of water area under fish culture, an...

The present study was conducted to know the fish health management practices and adaptations prevailing in the dominant fish producing state of India. Primary data was collected from the small and marginal fish farmers of West Bengal by personal interview. Literature review was also done to collect secondary information. The study reveals that thou...

Freshwater is indispensable for sustenance of life on earth, but is rapidly becoming a scarce resource. A centre on wastewater aquaculture was established during the 1970s in Rahara, Kolkata, which initiated research on recycling of sewage water for production of fish through nutrient recovery. Huge volume of sewage water has been treated through d...

The present work was conducted to identify the cause of mass mortality taken place in farm reared Mystus gulio. More than two thousand advanced fry died overnight without any prior symptoms. Sixty specimens were necropsied for parasitological analysis. Skin, gill and intestine biopsies were prepared from each specimen following standard methods for...

Bali Island is one of the mangrove reclaimed zone of Sunderban, West Bengal, inhabited mostly by tribal communities. Lack of employment opportunities and limited access to market as well as urban areas are characteristic features of livelihood of the people. The devastating cyclone “Aila” which hit the island during 2009, resulted in ingress of sal...

Aquaculture supplies currently account for nearly 50 percent of the food fish that consumed globally (FAO, 2009) and are targeted to increase to 60 percent by 2020 (FAO, 2008). Considering that the capture fisheries component of fish supply has almost reached a saturation level of approximately 100 million tonnes per year; the growing food fish nee...

Pterygoplichthys spp. (known colloquially as ‘Sailfin catfish’) a native to South America, has invaded in East Kolkata Wetlands. Large quantities of these fishes were found dispersed in the pond embankment of East Kolkata Wetland during the visit. These fishes are known to function as an environmental stressor by interacting directly with native an...

Mercury and cadmium are among the major heavy metal pollutants, contaminating aquatic ecosystems. These heavy metals were investigated in the present study for sub lethal toxicity on freshwater fish, Catla catla. The acute toxicity tests were conducted by static renewal bioassay method and 96 h LC50 value of mercury and cadmium to C. catla seed wer...

Abstract Low survival during early larval stages is one of the bottle necks in the successful seed production of many fish species. Many extrinsic and intrinsic factors may be responsible for low survival rates, but the most critical factor influencing larval survival is probably the availability of right kind and size of live food in appropriate d...

A 30 days feeding trial was conducted to study the antistress property of acetone extract of Zingiber officinale against acid stress in Labeo calbasu fingerlings. Fish fingerlings (7.34 +/- 0.06 g; average weight +/- SE) were randomly distributed into 4 treatment groups, each with 3 replicates and were fed with four diets containing different level...

A 30 days feeding trial was conducted to study the antistress property of acetone extract of Zingiber officinale against acid stress in Labeo calbasu fingerlings. Fish fingerlings (7.34 ± 0.06 g; average weight ± Se) were randomly distributed into 4 treatment groups, each with 3 replicates and were fed with four diets containing different levels of...

To estimate the dietary iron requirement of common goldfish, Carassius auratus (Linnaeus, 1758), eight isoproteinous diets containing graded levels of dietary iron (as FeSO4.7H2O) ranging from 34.27 to 537.14 mg kg were prepared and fed to triplicate groups of C. auratus fry in glass tanks. The rearing medium used in this study was ground water pas...

Studies were conducted to determine the effects of water hardness on egg hatchability and larval survival of aquarium fish Danio rerio. The fertilized eggs were incubated at 27 °C at six levels of water hardness: 5, 32, 63, 127, 220 and 315 mg 1-1 CaCO3. Incubation period of eggs increased with increase in water hardness. The mean hatching rate was...

The present study evaluated the efficacy of dietary doses of Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha) root powder on immunological parameters and disease resistance against the bacterial pathogen Aeromonas hydrophila infections in Indian major carp, Labeo rohita fingerlings. Fishes were fed with dry diet containing 0 gkg(-1) (control), 1 gkg(-1) (T(1)), 2...