Kerala : Farmers Disagree With Govt., Claims Expanding Fish Culture Will Affect Rice Production

 In a statement released here after farmers expressed their concerns in a petition to the State Governor, rice farmers here claimed that the decision to extend the time period for fish and shrimp farming up to April 30 under the guise of climate change conditions will severely affect rice cultivation in the pokkali fields.

According to the rice farmers, paddy cultivation in the pokkali fields must be done annually between April 15 and November 14 in accordance with the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act of 2008. Only the final five months of the year—the remaining nine—are suitable for fish culture.

The fields, shaped into sowing mounds, were fully depleted of their salt content by the first rains of the monsoon season. The fields are subsequently prepared for planting pokkali seeds in accordance with the Kerala Agricultural University's policy. The rice farmers said that adhering to the crop calendar is essential for successful rice farming.

The "fish lobby" has waged a campaign claiming that rice farming is not profitable and that the extension of saltwater fish farming is a win for fish farmers. The years 2020, 2021, and 2022 have seen an extension of the time for fish farming in the pokkali fields. The rice production has failed in recent years.

Rice growers Chandu Panjadiparambil, Phelomina Baby, Gasper Kalathingal, Sherly James, Lilly Joseph, M. C. Deepak, and M. C. Dileesh of Chellanam presented the governor with the petition.

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