Srikakulam: Farmers face difficulties due to adverse climate

Srikakulam : Aquaculture farmers are facing difficulties during current season and they are unable to earn invested amount also which was spent for cultivation of fish and prawn.

Adverse climatic conditions like rising temperatures, heat waves are causing boil of water in the aqua ponds which is hitting growth and health of fish and prawn. Suffocative situation and humidity in air is also causing trouble to fish as oxygen is not available properlyin the ponds.

To overcome this hurdle, farmers need to arrange aerators in ponds but increasing price for diesel is discouraging farmers to arrange it as huge quantity of diesel is required to run aerators.

Cost of the feed for fish and prawn also increased in market, government also enhanced power consumption charges and also imposed a rule for payment price for arrangement of power transformers at ponds. In Srikakulam, fish and prawn is being cultivated in an extent of 1,500 hectares in 11 mandals Itchapuram, Kaviti, Sompeta, Kanchili, Vajrapukotturu, Palasa, Santhabommali, Gara, Srikakulam rural, Etcherla and Ranastalam.

“We are facing difficult situation by cultivating aqua products as market situation, climatic conditions are adverse and government waived relaxations for transformers and power bills and price for diesel also increased,” said aqua farmers, L Bhima Rao, R Guruvulu, N Srinivas of Santhabommali, Polaki and Gara mandals.