Field day at integrated farming unit in Goa for revamping the agriculture and allied activities after the impacts of Covid-19 Pandemic

    A field day was conducted at a formerly active integrated fish farming system at Goa Velha on 20 September 2024. The owner of the farm, Mr. John Fernandez detailed the status of the farm and since 2020, the farm is not under operation after the Covid-19 pandemic period. The integrated farm was fully functional as a model for fish and livestock farming near the estuarine region including fish, crab and bivalve farming, poultry and piggery units and vegetable garden. A team of scientists from ICAR-CCARI visited the farm and provided advisories for the restoration of the farming enterprises. The structures for fish, bivalve and crab farming are already available and the activities can be taken up in the post-monsoon phase. The mud crab fattening technology using designed HDPE barrels was discussed and the farmer expressed his interest to initiate the farming. The farmer is also interested in taking up bamboo cultivation on the pond embankments and integrate it as a component in the farm. The farmer was advised to develop the farm as a fish-based agro-eco-tourism unit and also to maintain it as a center for training and demonstration to the interested farmers. Dr Sreekanth GB, Shri Trivesh Mayekar and Dr Uthappa AR, scientists from ICAR-CCARI coordinated the field visit.