Port Bl: The Andaman and Nicobar Islands have achieved a landmark in India’s blue economy by securing the country’s first-ever registration of a commercial Open Sea Cage Culture Farm under the Coastal Aquaculture Rules, 2024, setting a new benchmark for sustainable mariculture.
The registration has been granted by the Coastal Aquaculture Authority (CAA), Chennai, to the Open Sea Cage Culture Farm established by Islands Aquaculture & Marine Services (SHG) in a sea area leased by the Department of Fisheries, A&N Administration. The achievement highlights the Administration’s efforts to promote scientifically managed mariculture, encourage private investment and ensure compliance with the new regulatory framework.
The North Bay-based unit, established with technical support from ACOSTI-NIOT, Dollygunj, is engaged in commercial farming of Asian Seabass (Lates calcarifer), a high-value marine fish. The farm has four grow-out cages and four nursery cages, where around 1,000-1,200 fish seed stocked earlier have now grown to 6-8 inches under scientific culture practices using quality floating feed.
Meanwhile, registration of two more commercial open sea cage culture units at Chidiyatapu—proposed by M/s Aqua World Exports Pvt. Ltd. and M/s Canares Aquaculture LLP—is under process with the CAA. The Department of Fisheries is promoting open sea cage culture as a sustainable livelihood option to reduce pressure on capture fisheries. Under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), beneficiaries receive financial assistance of 40% of the approved unit cost, while women beneficiaries receive 60%, against a unit cost of ₹5 lakh per cage. The initiative is expected to boost investment, employment and sustainable marine aquaculture in the Islands.
