Fish Farm Planning: Site and Type

Fish Farm Planning: Site and Type

Fisheries and Aquaculture

Contents

Preface

I.          Introduction

II.         Planning for Site

1.    Water supply

2.    Quality of Water

3.    Soil

4.    Topography 

III.        Fish Farm Operations

1.    Kinds of operations

2.    Types of ponds

3.    Number of ponds

4.    Size of the pond

5.    Depth of the pond

6.    Single pond operation

7.    More than one pond operation

IV.        Other Factors

V.         Preparation of Master Plan

VI.        Conclusion

 

Preface

Like for any other properly managed enterprise, planning is necessary for the establishment of fish farm also. There are a number of things to be taken into consideration while planning the fish farm. A well planned fish farm is a permanent asset which will generate regular income to the fish farmer. This booklet tries to provide all the important points that are to be kept in mind so that it can be used as a guide for anyone to set up a fish farm. This booklet is useful both for home level as well as commercial level fish farming.

 

 Agricultural & Environmental Education

 

I. Introduction

Fish culture is one form of aquaculture. Rearing fish in ponds is an ancient practice which began as long ago as 2700 B.C. in China. However, there is a lot of difference between the ancient and the modem pond fish farming practices. As a result of many research studies allover the world on fish farming, the scientists have created a system of knowledge that can be utilized effectively by the modem fish farmers.

Fish farming cannot be carried out in isolation; it should fit into the other farming systems and ultimately in to the ecological system. In the ecological system there exists a continuous cycle of organic matter and water. The planning should be such that the fish farm become a part of the ecological system of the place.

Vegetable and other garden products go to the fish pond while the mud excavated and the sediments formed later from the pond to the garden; the irrigation water from the farm goes to the pond while the surrounding farm area is benefited from the seepage of the water from the pond; the farm waste and animal dung from the farm go to the fish pond as manure while the pond provides fish meal, aquatic insects and plants; at the time of water scarcity water from the pond can be used for vegetable growing and for other essential usages; weeds, grasses and crop wastes from the agriculture farm and the fish farm go to the cattle as fodder while the insects and other aquatic organisms become the feed for poultry and pigs. These are only few examples of how the fish pond fits in with the agricultural system and the ecological system.

Anyone who gets ready to start a fish farm should keep in mind the following points. These points are so important that they are repeated in the Booklet No 520 on "Construction of Fish Ponds". For the benefit of the reader of this booklet these points are expressed here in the form of questions for which the prospective fish fanner should find answers and based on the answers he will be able to make a proper decision whether to have a fish farm or not. The answers also will provide him clear ideas to plan for the fish farm.

1. Is the soil able to hold water for a fish pond?

2. Is there an adequate supply of water for a pond?

3. Is the land in a good shape for a fish pond?

4. Is the pond area close to your home?

5. Who owns the land where the pond will be built?

6. Are there enough people to help to build and harvest the pond?

7. Can the equipment for building a pond be built, borrowed, or bought?

8. Is there a market place nearby?

9. Are there roads from the pond area to a market place?

10. Are the roads passable even in the rainy season?

11. Is there a vehicle available for transportation, if necessary ?

12. If there is no market nearby, or if it is hard to get to the market, can the fish be kept by drying, smoking, or salting?

13. Is there enough food for the pond fish?

14. Are there fertilizers available?

15. Do the people in the are alike fish? Do they eat fresh water fish?

16. Can the people in the area afford to buy the fish produced in the pond?

If the farmer finds "yes" to most of these questions he has a fairly good chance for success in his fish farming enterprise. These points are further considered in detail in the following pages.

Various aspects of the fish farm planning is discussed in general so that anyone who wants to start a fish farming can find this booklet as a useful guide. As already mentioned in the preface, this booklet has details for the most sophisticated and commercial fish farmers as well as for the home level fish growers. Hence, it is up to the individual how much of the details given in this booklet are applicable to himself or herself.

 

II. Planning for Site

Before the construction of the pond the farmer should have a good look at the land available to him to choose the place or places where the ponds can be constructed. Finding a suitable place is the most important and the fist step in the planning of the fish pond. Fish rearing IS a form of land use like land use in agriculture. If the site is well chosen the pond will be more productive.

Often poor agricultural land can be converted into very good fish ponds. However, the better the soil the greater the possibility of making a good fish pond at lesser expense. There are mainly three factors that contribute to make a good site for a fish pond water supply, soil and topography. These are further explained in detail.

1. Water supply

Fish live in water and hence the most important factor for the site selection is the availability of water. If natural water supply is not existing try to find some underground water sources or whether water can be brought in from outside through pipes, channels etc. It is also possible to store rain water into tanks in which the fish can be grown.

The sources of water for the fish pond are mentioned here.

a. Rainfall

Some ponds rely on rainfall alone and they are called "sky ponds".

b. Run-ofT

Some ponds get their water from the run-off from the surrounding areas during the rainy season.

c. Natural waters

The word natural waters is referred to the water available from the lakes, rivers, streams and springs.

d. Springs

Some ponds will have active springs inside, filling the pond.

e. Wells

Many ponds are fed with water from the open wells or tube wells.

However, there can be problems also with the water supply. For example, there can be flooding during the rainy season which will affect adversely the fish pond system. Hence, the places that are prone to flood should not be chosen; even sporadically flooded areas should be avoided for fish ponds unless there are possibilities of protecting the pond area artificially.

If the water is taken from the river or stream that are prone to flood there should be an inbuilt mechanism to control the inflow of water into the pond.

2. Quality of water

The quality of water is checked by the following methods.

a. Look at the water to observe the colour and visible suspended particles, check for any obnoxious smell and taste to check whether the water is salty or having any other taste.

b. Check whether there are any people residing or factories situated in the upstream which may pollute the water coming to the pond.

c. Make sure also that there are no families or people who depend on the down stream water for drinking and domestic usages.

If the water is very clear the farmer can apply fertilizers in the pond; if the water is muddy he has to allow the sediments to settle down before he uses the water in the pond. He has to build special silt catching structures through which water has to pass before it enters the pond. If the water is greenish in colour probably it has a lot of fish feed in it. If the water is dark, smelly brown it may be acidic and the farmer has to add sufficient lime to neutralize it and add gypsum if the water is alkaline.

3. Soil

Soil of the area is the most important factor that has to be taken into consideration. It should be able to hold water. Besides the water holding capacity the soil should be rich in nutrients/minerals. Clay soil holds water well and hence, check the soil for the clay content by feeling a sample of it in the hand.

If the soil is sticky and can be formed into shape, it means the soil has high clay content; if the soil is gritty, it is sandy and if it is smooth and silky, it is a silty soil. Clay soil is best for the pond construction. However a poor water holding soil also can be treated at the base of the pond with lot of organic manure and other biomass materials to improve its water holding capacity.

Soils that contain lot of plant nutrients (minerals and elements) are better for the pond construction because the natural growth of micro and macro organisms will be enhanced. In other words, a nutrient rich soil will provide more feed to the fish. At the same time acid and alkali forming nutrients should not be predominant in the soil.

One indication of the nutrient status of the soil is to check whether the crops grow well in the soil. If it grows the soil is better for fish pond also. Fertile soils in the pond encourages phytoplankton growth which in turn will allow the growth of macro fauna.

4. Topography

Topography refers to the shape of the land whether fiat, slope, hilly, upland, lowland, undulated, etc. Topography of the land decides the kind of the pond that can be built. Ponds can be built in any place: in the valleys, on the fiat ground; they can be built in any shape: square or rectangular or uneven shape; they can be large or small. All these are determined by the topography as well as by the farmers requirements.

The best topography for the fish pond construction is the one which allows the farmer to fill the pond and drain the water from it using gravity. Ponds built on the fiat land will have to be made sloping to one side at the bottom to drain out completely using a pump or some other water lifting devices to empty.

Therefore, the best place for the pond construction is a place with slight slope and plenty of water supply. The farmer should look for a topography that makes the fish farming as easy and successful as possible. However, if water is available even on the poor topographical land also fish pond can

be constructed.

III. Fish Farm Operations

Once the farmer has found out the place for the pond the next step is to decide what kind of fish culture is possible with the space available. He must also decide whether his resources will allow him for starting a fish farm. This planning is necessary to determine the number of fish ponds to be constructed and the kind of fish culture one wants to take up.

A range of ideas are presented in this section of the booklet concerning the kinds of fish farm operations whether raising fish or breeding fish, whether raising carps, tilapia or catfish, whether prawns or shrimps, etc. He also gets an idea on the type of ponds small or big, grow in one pond or in more ponds, advantages of small and big ponds, advantages of mixing or separating different breeds of fish and sexes, etc.

A farmer who prepares himself to start fish farming should keep in mind that a certain percentage of fish introduced into the pond will die however much we try to take care of them. In the nature many fishes never reach their adult size because they are eaten by other animals or big fishes or they die of diseases. "Survival of the fittest" is the law of nature. In the artificial rearing of fishes in the ponds the farmer tries to provide maximum growing and development conditions for getting maximum number of fishes and thereby maximum number of fishes reach marketable size.

1. Kinds of operations

As already mentioned once the site is identified the farmer has to decide whether he wants to go for breeding and production of fry and fingerlings or rear them till they attain marketable size. For breeding he needs more number of small ponds. The number of ponds may be more if he is trying to breed several breeds of fishes and in the same breed several sets of breeders (one set of breeders consists of two males and one female). If the farmer is planning to rear the fish only he needs big ponds. Depending on the number of fishes he wants to rear he may need one or more ponds. He also should consider whether he is raising the fish for the family usage or tor marketing purposes and whether he wants it as a main business or as a subsidiary business.

Questions like these have to be considered so that he can construct (a) the right kinds of ponds, (b) the right number of ponds and (c) stock the right kinds of fishes.

2. Types of ponds

The types of pond a farmer can build depend upon water supply, soil and topography. Generally, two types of ponds are built -barrage ponds and diversion ponds. The main difference between these two types of pond is the water source though in many aspects the construction details are the same.

a. Ban-age ponds

In barrage ponds the water source is the rain run-off water or a spring forming into a small stream running down the valley. The site is marked by a valley type of topography and the pond is constructed by building a wall across the valley and store the running water through the valley. The  area where water is collected is called the pond area.

The barrage pond requires only one wall at the lower side of the pond area. By building a number of walls at suitable intervals the farmer can make several ponds successively one after the other forming a chain of ponds. The water enters first into the pond which is at the highest elevation among all the ponds and then passes on to the next pond lower in elevation. In other words the drained out water from the higher pond is collected by the lower one through a drainage pipe and then to the next lower till we reach the last one. From the last one the water is drained out safely. When ponds and the water inlet and outlet are arranged in such a way that the water flows from one pond to the other it is called ponds in series or rosary system.

Water can also be directed independently into each pond from a channel running along one side of the pond and drained out into another channel at the other side of the pond. This is the best system of water supply to the fish ponds. Arrangement of ponds in this way is called ponds in parallel system. The channel that supplies water is called inlet channel and the  channel that collects water from each pond is called drainage channel.

The drainage outlet may be fixed at the bottom side of the pond if the pond is to be drained out completely. Besides this drainage outlet there should bean outlet at a height beyond which the farmer does not want to accumulate the water in the pond. This is for the protection of the build which will be broken if water gets accumulated beyond certain height. The excess water is drained out from the pond through this drainage which acts as an overflow channel. The drainage and the overflow channel should be constructed in such a way that the water should be drained out safely without eroding the soil and causing damage to the pond.

In barrage ponds, flow channels are fixed at a suitable height in order to drain out the excess water that may be accumulated during the rain. There are many variations of overflow channel system from which the farmer can choose the most suitable one. The drainage and overflow channel can be joined together just before they join the common big drainage channel.

Barrage ponds should not be built where the flow of the water is high. The walls will not be able to withstand the force of rushing water especially during the rainy season.

b. Diversion ponds

Diversion ponds are those which receive water from river or stream through a diversion channel. One diversion channel takes water to the pond and another diversion channel act as a drainage. The drainage channel may be taking the water into the same river or stream from which the water came in or to a farm where it is used for irrigation or the water may be drained out into any other outlet. If more than one pond are constructed they are connected with the inlets and outlets in series or in parallel design.

Diversion pond can be made in a number of ways de- pending on the ingenuity of the farmer. It can be built anywhere provided water can be taken to it from a water source by channel or pipe.

If the pond is built on a flat ground there should be walls all around to prevent the collapse of the sides. Sometimes the ponds are constructed by deepening an area which is lower than the surroundings. If there is enough space and water supply is assured there can be several ponds successively constructed to use the overflow of water from one diversion pond to a second one and from the second to the third and so on, till the last.

Whatever may be the type of pond being constructed there will always be some advantages and disadvantages. The farmer has to consider both the advantages and disadvantages and make his decision most beneficial to him. However, diversion ponds are better than barrage ponds because they are less likely to overflow and the water source is more dependable. But barrage ponds are cheaper in construction. Similar- ly parallel system of pond construction is better than the se- ries or rosary system. One can have a mixture of barrage ponds and diversion ponds arranged in series (rosary) or parallel system. The art of planning and constructing fish ponds is very much an individual thing. There are many ways of using land and water resources. But the exact shape, number and size of the ponds have to be decided by the farmer.

3. Number of ponds

The number of ponds usually depends on the number of functions the farmer wants to perform and also the number of times he would like to repeat a single function within a given period of time. The functions related to the fisheries are holding a breeding stock, breeding, hatching, raising fry, raising fingerlings and rearing for marketing. Normally these functions are better done in different ponds or water bodies.

At the same time it should be remembered that several functions can be performed in the same pond or water body. For example, breeding and hatching and raising fry can be done in the same pond. However, for breeding large number of breeding stock we require more than one pond. Similarly, the number of ponds also depends on the number of breeds or kinds of fish the farmer wants to breed. For example, if the farmer wants to breed several breeds of fish, different ponds may be required, or several sets of the same breed is to be maintained. In the same way if the frequency of breeding is more (eg. once a week, once in two weeks, a month etc.) the number of ponds required will be more. At least two ponds

are required for rearing for market purposes. If the farmer cannot make more than one pond he can also breed and hatch the fish in an enclosure of inverted mosquito-net fixed inside the pond.

4. Size of the pond

The size of the pond also depends on topography, water supply, and the need or volume of production one intends to have. However, the nursery ponds will be smaller than the rearing ponds. Apart from this the size of the rearing pond itself can be varying. The advantages of small ponds are, function like harvesting, draining, refilling, treatment for diseases, etc. can be done quickly and easily. But the cost of construction and the land area required for the small ponds will be more compared to large ponds. But for the small and marginal farmers few small ponds are better than having large ponds.

5. Depth of the pond

The depth of the pond also depends on several factors such as breeding, fry raising, fingerling raising, rearing for marketing, etc. Least depth is required for breeding and fry raising and maximum depth is required for rearing for marketing. Normally for breeding and fry raising the pond depth ranges from 0.5 to 1.0 m while for raising fingerlings a depth of 1.0 to 1.5 m is recommended. For rearing fish to market size the recommended pond depth varies from 1.2 to 2.0 metre.

Normally, sunlight does not reach deeper than two metres and the growth of the planktons will be restricted. At the same time too shallow pond will heat up the water or too much vegetative growth may occur and consequently the available oxygen to the fish will be much less than the required especially during the night hours.

But in commercial farms breeding and raising of fry is done in plastic tubs, basins, glass jars or even in big mud pots. Glass vessels are better for this purpose because we can observe the fertilization, hatching and the conditions of the fry well.

6. Single pond operation

If the farmer can have only one pond he could purchase or collect fry and fingerling and rear them to market size. For this there should be regular supply of fry and fingerlings. He can also breed fish inside a netted area in the same pond.

The farmer who is having single pond can go for culture of single breed or a mixture of several breeds. The former is called monoculture and the later polyculture. Both have ad- vantages and disadvantages.

3. Monoculture

Monoculture is the fish culture of only one species. It is intensive in caring, feeding and other management practices. It is easier to perform all the management practices since only one type of fish is involved. In monoculture the farmer has greater control over the size, age and sex. In mono culture fish can be harvested selectively by using nets of different mesh size. In monoculture diseases and pests are easily controlled at the same time there is a possibility of complete elimination of the whole lot by some epidemic type of diseases and pests if they go out of control.

b. PoIycuIture

In polyculture different breeds of fish are mixed together in fixed proportion or at random. Polyculture is more closer to the natural method of growing fish and under this situation only the fittest ones will survive. Several small fishes may be eaten by the bigger ones or they could not compete with the bigger ones for food and space. This problem is more in the case of poly culture in which both carnivorous and herbivorous fishes are reared together.

At the same time a farmer can have a polyculture with proper combinations (in number) of selected breeds of fishes. The selection is done on the basis of feeding habits. Such polyculture is called composite fish farming. For example, a farmer can rear a mixture of Indian carps such as catla, rohu, mrigal and Chinese carps such as silver carp, common carp and grass carp. The catla and silver carp normally takes feed from the upper layers of the water body, the rohu and common carp from the middle layers, while the mrigal and grass carp takes feed from the bottom layers of the pond. All are herbivorous in their feeding habit. In the composite fish culture full utilization of the pond is possible.

If the breed introduced are naturally fast multiplying like tilapia and their number is a problem in the pond, another fish breed like catfish which is carnivorous can be introduced. The catfish will feed on the organisms at the bottom as well as the fry of tilapia keeping the population of tilapia under control. Introducing some grass carp among other breeds of fish that are being reared is the best method of controlling the weed growth in the pond. For farmers who have only one pond and do not have facilities like regular supply of fry and fingerlings nor he is unable or unwilling to breed them and those who cannot feed and care in the scientific and intensive ways, it is advisable to go for poly-culture with fishes that naturally breed in the pond.

c. Monosex culture

In monosex culture either male or female fish of the same breed or more than one breed is reared. The advantage is faster growth of the fish since all the energy is concentrated on the growth and development. No energy is used for the reproduction.

Sexes can be separated individually during the breeding season or by noting the difference between the male and female in a breed of fish. In the cross breeding of some fish the off springs produced are sterile by nature or produce hundred per cent male fish. For example, if we cross male tilapia of Tilapia macrochir with female of T. nilotica , the male of T. mossambica with the female of T.nilotica and male of T. hororum with female of T. mossambica the off springs will be completely male. There are no crosses in which 100% off- springs produced are female.

Monosex culture is valuable but difficult for ordinary farmers to carry out the breeding and rearing. Therefore, it is not recommended generally to the small scale fish farms unless there is a steady supply of male fry or fingerlings.

7. More than one pond operation

If the farmer has more than one pond then, he can rear fry or fingerlings for marketing in all the ponds or he can take up the breeding in one, raise fry or fingerlings in another and can rear fish up to marketable size in another pond. If he still has more ponds he can replicate the same functions in more than one pond. With three ponds a farmer can go for breeding and raising of fry for his own farm. The smallest one is used for breeding while the others may be used for rearing till they attain marketable size.

The major difference between a large farm operation and a small farm operation is the number of ponds and the fry or fingerlings reared. In big fish farms all the input requirements will be more so also the greater output can be expected in terms of production as well as income.

 

IV. Other Factors

Besides the above mentioned factors other important considerations in planning for the fish farm are: marketing facilities, transport facilities, communication facilities, banking facilities, availability of fish feed at the local level, storage and processing facilities, ownership of the pond area, labour force for construction and maintenance of the fish pond and availability of equipments and implements.

1. Marketing facilities

For commercial production availability of market facilities is an important consideration while planning for fish farming. Market facilities here means mainly the openings for sale of fish and the demand for it.

Market can be at the local level or at a distant place. The local market depends on whether people are fish eaters or not and if they are, whether they have the purchasing power or not. Even if the local people are fish eaters but they have no purchasing power there will not be any local market.

If the market is at a distant place the question is how far away, is it within the reach or far away? How do we take the fish to that place? Are there transport facilities and vehicles to transport the fish or not? If fishes are to be marketed how frequently one wants to or can market, daily, weekly, fort- nightly or monthly? For daily marketing the production level should be very high so that he can catch sizable quantity of fish for the market.

The quantity of the fish to be marketed is an important consideration in employing any transport system. Unless there is sufficient quantity of fish one cannot employ vehicles to transport the fish produced. Proper quantity of fish can be ensured if several fish farmers join together to do the marketing operations.

Marketing considerations also include the facilities for purchasing things required for the fish farmers not only things directly related to fish farming but also for their livelihood. If such marketing facilities are available greater will be the possibility of success.

Facilities for storage ,and processing the fish is another consideration related to marketing. If there are such facilities the fish farmer need not worry about the sale of fish immediately after the production.

2. Transport facilities

Whether already some transport facilities are existing or not is an important consideration for a farmer to plan for fish farming. Transport facilities include mainly motorable road, railways or waterway transport. If there are roads are they public or private? Are there vehicles plying'? Are these vehicles private or government? If regular commercial vehicles are not plying are these vehicles available on rent or can the fish farmer have a vehicle himself? For a successful fish farming business, proper road facilities are important.

3. Communication facilities

At present there are many communication facilities available in the market. But at least telephones should be available to the fish farmer. Through telephones he can do lot of the business transactions and thus can save time, money and effort. Where written communication are to be transacted, at least post and telegraph facilities are needed if not fax machine facility.

4. Banking facilities

Banking and credit facilities are essential for the fish farmer to begin his enterprise. Initial investments are very high for the establishment of the fish farm. The major expense is in the construction of the fish pond, the channels, and other related structures. Normally no one will have sufficient reserve of money to begin a fish pond construction. Therefore, he needs to take loans from the bank and such banking facilities should be available to the fish farmer.

5. Availability of fish feed

The most important among the running expenses for the fish farming is the expenses on feed. Feeding is an every day activity to achieve the targeted production of fish. The quality of feed in terms of protein percentage differs depending on whether it is a fry, fingerlings, rearing and fattening stage or breeder fish. The feed or the ingredients for the feed mixture should be available to the fish farmer at the local level.

If they are not available at the local level they should be available from the nearby market. This involves increase in the cost of production as he will have to pay for the transport. Whether at the 10ca1level or at a distant market quality feed should be available to the fish farmer. Otherwise fish farming cannot be done and hence availability of feed is an important consideration in the planning for the fish farm.

6. Availability of labour

For running a home level fish pond only the family labour is enough. But for commercia1level fish production we need certain number of labourers to carry out the day-to-day operations such as feeding, checking of the water inlet and outlet, the quality of water, cleaning of the pond from excess aquatic plant growth, aerating the water with oxygen, pumping in or out of the water, etc. Labour are also needed for periodic operations like handling the breeders, breeding, hatching, raising fry and fingerlings, sale of try and fingerlings, harvesting of fish, grading and packing, transport of the fish, purchase or preparation of feed mixture etc. Therefore, one who plans for fish farming should consider the availability of the labourers and the cost of the labour.

7. Availability of equipments

Fishing nets, double walled fish breeding net, hand net, vessels, tubs, aerators, feeders to provide feed for the fish, injection syringe and needles, mortar and pestle, saline solution bottle, dissection-box, etc. are the necessary equipments required for the fish farming. The fish farmer while planning should consider the possibility of easy access to these equipments either by purchase or by borrowing.

8. Storage and processing

Often it is not possible to market the fish immediately after they are caught and there is a need for holding the stock for a day or two without the fish getting spoiled. Deep freezer cold storage and ice boxes are the necessary facilities for storing the harvested fish.

The harvested fish can also be stored alive in special enclosures or tanks with sufficient water and minimum feeding facilities if they are to be held for more than one or two days. These enclosures can be constructed like big box with low height opening by a lid fixed with hinges. They are best constructed with strong wire-mesh so that when they are placed in the pond with the harvested fish, the pond water itself will be available to the fish. Selected fish can be picked up from these enclosures as and when the customers come to purchase the fish. The customers should be able to see the fish and choose whichever ones he wants to buy. In such enclosures the farmer can catch a particular fish without disturbing the other fishes in the enclosure.

The enclosures made of strong galvanized wire-mesh are fixed on to the frames and hung with the help of rope and pulley mechanism. The enclosure with the harvested fish is kept in the pond water. When the customer comes to purchase, the enclosure can be lifted sufficiently enough to see the fish inside and the customer can choose. To catch the fish the enclosure is lifted, the lid is opened and the particular fish is hand netted out and the enclosure is lowered again into the water after closing the lid. This is only one of the methods of storing live fish. Each fish farmer can device his own method depending on his resourcefulness.

Processing such as cleaning, dressing, icing, canning, pickling, converting into fish products and byproducts, etc. add value to the harvested fish. The value added this way may be as high as 100 per cent and this profit derived is in terms of net profit for the fish farmer as well as for the number of labourers who will be employed in the processing in terms of the job opportunities available to them. The fish waste generated during the processing can be utilized as one of the ingredients for the fish feed.

9. Ownership of the land

The ownership of the land on which the fish pond is constructed is an important consideration. Several infrastructural facilities at the pond site cannot be installed if the land is belonging to a person other than the fish farmer who is only a tenant. The tenancy may be also for only one year or for few years after which he is not sure whether the tenancy will be renewed or not. The actual owner may not be interested in the development of the fishery. He may be satisfied with whatever he gets from the pond. A tenant fish farmer can only rear the fish till they attain marketable size and sell in the market. Under such conditions there is nothing much for the fish farmer to plan.

Whereas, if the land is belonging to the fish farmer himself he can have a long term plan to establish a fish farm with its full potential. Even if he does not execute the project immediately he can always have a full scale plan which can be completed stage by stage. Hence, under the full ownership of the land, planning has some meaning for the fish farmer.

10. Electricity and power

In the modem world how important the availability of electrical power is, needs no mentioning, It plays a key role in every sphere of human life. The farmer, therefore, should check whether uninterrupted electricity is available or not at the pond area.

 

V. Preparation of Master Plan

Whatever so far discussed, are points related to the survey and assessment of the land and water resources and the facilities needed for establishing a successful fish farm. Once the survey is made a master plan in the form of a blue print is made showing all the details such as area of the total land coming under the pond system, number of ponds, size of each pond, shape of each pond, depth of the ponds, the water inlet channels, outlet channels, classiness to the house, road, rail- way and market facilities, the watchman's and the labourers houses, pump house, storage facilities, area for the preparation of the fish, ponds for breeding, hatching, raising try, fingerlings, rearing up to marketable size etc.

But in the case of a single or double pond at the home level use, such an elaborate blue print may not be required. However, a master plan roughly drawn on a paper will be of great help to get a clean idea of the ponds to be constructed and managed.

For the planning of commercial fish farms it is highly recommended to seek the help of a civil engineer and other technicians in the construction of the bunds, walls, silt catching structures, outlet and inlet construction with control valves,

Whether it is commercial enterprise or home level usage the ponds should be constructed according to the principles of the ecological and environmental maintenance. In short they should be environment friendly. The master plan also should include the cost-benefit ratio of the enterprise. This is especially true for the commercial enterprises. Even for the home level ponds also such cost-benefit calculation is very much encouraged.

Master plan in the case of commercial enterprises will show the stages of implementation so that such a plan can also be a guideline for the evaluation and monitoring of the project.

The master plan also should include the future management system, the system of monitoring and the type of records to be maintained on various activities.

Such a master plan with all the details is necessary to obtain financial assistance from the banks and other financing agencies. They are to be included along with the project to be submitted to the financing agencies.

The master plan also serve as a reference for the future for anyone who may be getting involved in the fish farming system.

 

VI. Conclusion

In order 10 make fish farming successful and to derive long term benefit from it, a master plan for the layout of the pond area should be made before any thing being started. The land available is surveyed according to the questions given in the introduction of this booklet, and a master plan is made. This master plan is checked and discussed with others and only after that it is finalized. The master plan also should include a plan of phase-wise execution plan. The fish pond system should fit into the agricultural system of the place and the overall ecological system.

Once the plan is implemented the fish pond becomes a permanent asset which will generate regular income for the fish farmer.

This information given in this booklet will help to make a feasibility study about the possibility of a fish pond system before he makes a master plan.