46 DECEMBER 2023 • WORLD AQUACULTURE • WWW.WAS.ORG desire for profit. A community responsible for managing fisheries resources always keeps in mind maintenance of the balance between production and conservation, which results in sustainability of floodplain fisheries resources. Floodplain fisheries resources in Bihar can be utilized sustainably by adopting community-based fisheries management strategies with appropriate temporal activities within this area. The development of ownership is the key element for community-based fisheries management. Therefore, while deciding the ownership of the floodplain wetland, both landowners holding lands in the floodplain area and also inhabitants of nearby villages (who do not own land in the floodplain) should be included by issuing a proportional number of shares for community members. The community member without own land in the floodplain area may be helpful in seed/ fish transportation, feeding, maintaining bunds/dikes in ponds or fencing in enclosures, and harvesting fish. Therefore, depending on management activities among shareholders, different tasks should be assigned. Temporal management approaches for floodplain areas should be planned for both monsoon and dry seasons, and should be shared well in advance among all members of the community to avoid any dispute in utilization of floodplain resources. Temporal Activities in Floodplain Wetlands Pre-Monsoon (February-May) Strengthen bunds and sluice gates in permanent structures, and erection and repair of pen materials for temporary structures. • Harvest of undesirable fishes from ditches and enclosures. • Purchase fish fingerlings and feed for stocking and feeding in grow out-sites (during the first week of March). • Maintenance of purchased fingerlings in small areas prior to stocking in grow-out sites. • Generate the fund for aquaculture by issuing shares or other means. Monsoon (June- September) • Community level aquaculture in the fenced floodplain areas through cage culture and pen culture from June to October/November • Selection of species for aquaculture such as Indian major carps, exotic carps, pangasius, GIFT tilapia, Labeo bata, Jayanti rohu, Ompok bimaculatus (pabda), Anabas testudineus, Puntius sarana, Chitala chitala (featherback), Murrels (Channa striata, C. marulius), Wallago attu and shellfish (Macrobrachium rosenbergii). • Monitoring for seed stocking and feeding on a regular basis. Post-monsoon (October- January) • Adopt good marketing strategies. • The harvesting of fish may start in late September or early October based on growth, natural conditions and market demand. It may continue to early February. • Harvests time should not coincide with capture season for wild fish. • After monsoon season, water can be held by shutting the sluice gates. Water can be retained up to late December for extended fish culture. • Aquaculture in deeper pits area can be done after the monsoon season either by individuals or the community. Conclusion Flood plain wetlands constitute a major portion of the North Bihar region. A majority of the farming population in this region depends on agricultural and allied activities; however, fisheries resources also contribute significantly to farmers’ total income. This reality requires special strategies for management of fisheries resources in the region. Capture fishery activities for open wetlands, culture-based fishery activities for closed wetlands, culture-based capture fisheries and integrated fish farming are all important management strategies which can be applied for proper utilization of wetland fisheries resources. Adopting community-based fisheries management strategies with suitable temporal activities can definitely enhance farmers’ income and improve existing socioeconomic status. Notes Rohan Kumar Raman, Vivekanand Bharti, Dhiraj Kumar Singh*, Jaspreet Singh and Akram Ahmed. Division of Socio-Economics & Extension ICAR-RCER, Patna (Bihar), India. * Corresponding author: dhirajextension@gmail.com References Das, A., P. K. Santra and S.Bandyopadhyay. 2016. The flood of Bihar, India: an analysis of its causes. Natural Hazards 107: 751769. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-021-04604-0 Kumar, R., N. R., N. R. Kumar and M. Kumar. 2015. Community participated management of chaur (floodplain) fisheries: A case study of mahisar chaur in Samastipur district of Bihar, India. Journal of Applied and Natural Science 7(2): 991-996. National Fisheries Development Board. 2019. Aquaculture Technologies Implemented by National Fisheries Development Board, Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying, Govt. of India, Hyderabad. Pp-1-58. https://nfdb.gov.in/PDF/E%20Publications/14%20 Aquaculture%20Technologies%20Implemented%20by%20 NFDB.pdf Suggested Readings Dey A., K. Sarma, U. Kumar, S. Mohanty, T. Kumar and B.P. Bhatt. 2019. Prospects of rice-fish farming system for low lying areas in Bihar, India. Organic Agriculture 9:99-106. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s13165-017-0204-8 Dey M. M. and M. Prein. 2006. Community-Based Fish Culture in Seasonal Floodplains. NAGA, WorldFish Center Quarterly 29(1 and 2):21-27. Gorai B. K., V. V. Sugunan and B. C. Jha. 2006. Raising of Stocking Materials of Indian Major Carps in Pen Enclosures in Selected Floodplain Wetlands of Assam, India. Asian Fisheries Science 19:185-197. https://doi.org/10.33997/j.afs.2006.19.3.001 Haque A. B. M. H. and M. M. Dey. 2017. Impacts of communitybased fish culture in seasonal floodplains on income, food security and employment in Bangladesh. Food Security 9:25-38. https:// doi.org/10.1007/s12571-016-0629-z https://dof.gov.in/sites/default/files/2020-07/Wetland_Fisheries_ Development.pdf https://icar.org.in/content/livelihood-improvement-throughecosystem-based-wetland-management.
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