Uttar Pradesh, which is catalysing agri allied activities to boost rural income, has witnessed its fish production jump 38 percent in the last four years to 915,000 tonnes.
Against the fish production of 662,000 tonnes in 2018-19, the output increased to 809,000 tonnes and 915,000 tonnes in the financial years 2021-22 and 2022-23 respectively.
In 1999, the state fish production was estimated at just 183,000 tonnes.
UP fisheries development minister Sanjay Nishad said fish farming is a vital agricultural allied activity to increase farm income.
He said currently, the fisheries department could harness merely 496,000 hectares of the available ponds and water tanks in the state.
Meanwhile, the department has launched a novel scheme to empower women fish farmers and to make them self reliant.
The scheme is also aimed at improving the quality of fish and making fresh fish varieties available to the consumers.
In 1978, the department initiated aqua culture in a planned manner when the fish production was merely 574 kg per hectares.
In the last 45 years, the yield has increased 10 times even as there is potential to further improve upon this figure, he added.
Currently, UP ranks 3rd in the fish production pecking order with a 13 percent annual growth and 915,000 tonnes of production.
Nishad said consulting agency Deloitte has estimated that under the UP’s flagship $trillion economy roadmap, the fisheries could contribute a Gross State Domestic Production (GSDP) of Rs 58,000 crore in 2024.