Jalpaiguri, July 12 (Siliguri Chronicle) – The Fisheries Department of Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) in Mainaguri block, Jalpaiguri, launched a fish vaccination drive on Friday. The initiative aims to improve the immunity of fish and reduce the death rate among fingerlings.
The KVK centre operates under the West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences.
“We have vaccinated fish at a hatchery in Mainaguri. On one hand, the vaccines will strengthen the immunity of fish. On the other hand, the mortality rate of fingerlings will reduce and will eventually help in increasing the yield in water bodies and hatcheries,” said Indranil Ghosh, a scientist at the centre.
According to officials, vaccines like CIFA BROOD—developed by the Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (CIFA)—along with synthetic spawning hormones, were administered to fish at the Jalpesh Hatchery in Mainaguri.
“Usually, from one lakh roe (fish eggs), around 42,000 hatchlings live, which eventually reduce to 20,000 to 28,000 fish. Now that the vaccines have been applied, this figure will go up,” Ghosh added.
On Friday, rohu and katla—two major varieties of Indian carp—were vaccinated at the Jalpesh Hatchery.
“On several occasions, we had to bear losses as less number of hatchlings used to mature. Now that the vaccines have been applied, the yield will increase and will help us,” said Kaushik Roy, who runs the hatchery.
Experts said this is the first time a fish vaccination programme has been carried out in north Bengal.
“The vaccine is injected near the fins. The fish is then kept under observation and released into the water in due course. Now that the vaccines have been applied, the fish will not get infected, and the Piscean population in the entire water body will remain safe,” said an expert.
He added that the vaccines used on the fish are safe and have no side effects. “Eventually, we will have good quality fish and also more fish from a water body where vaccination has been carried out,” he added.
Sources said similar fish vaccination drives are planned for other hatcheries across north Bengal during the next monsoon season.
