Manish Kumar
Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, Oct 7: Aquaponics, a combination of aquaculture and hydroponics, could soon find wider application in the state. The technique allows floating plant beds on water bodies and rearing fish in the underlying water.
City-based Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (CIFA) is studying whether the technique can be adopted in the climatic conditions of Orissa.
Fish reared in such water bodies excrete toxic waste such as ammonia. These are absorbed by the floated plants as nutrients. Ammonia from the fish waste in the pond gets converted into nitrites and nitrates through bacterial action and nitrates support plant growth.
The plants are also able to absorb nutrients from food that the fish leave behind. The technique allows detoxification of water bodies through a biological process.
B C Mohanty, a senior researcher at CIFA, told Orissa POST: “We have just started testing the technique. It will take us 3 4 years to find how successful this technique is. Initial experiments have been successful.”
Ananda Raja, a research fellow at CIFA, said the tests have proven successful with certain plants. “We have grown brinjal and other plants using the technique. Time-bound research alone will prove if our endeavours are successful.”
However, one limitation of the technique is that it supports growing only certain kinds of plants. “Leafy vegetables such as broccoli, lettuce, spinach, palak, pudina are the best. Tomato, ladies’ finger and brinjal can also be grown,” Raja adds.
Besides CIFA, other private online platforms are also working to promote the technique across the country. In addition to infrastructure support, such institutions are also providing short-term training programmes.
Experts say the technology can benefit urban dwellers with rooftops to spare.
Many aquaponics enthusiasts claim the technique significantly reduces water usage, expedites growth of plants without using chemical fertilisers and does away with the need to replace water in the ponds regularly. Limited requirement of land for cultivation is another benefit touted.
On the yield front, aquaponics provides three harvests of leafy green vegetables in six months. The farmer needs to fear only airborne pests since soil is not involved. These can be dealt with using bio insecticides such as tobacco juice, experts claim.
The technique is not without its downside, though. Currently, its implementation requires an expensive set up, including a greenhouse. It requires monitoring of water and does not support root crops. Besides, a regular input of fish food becomes mandatory.
