Present status of Fisheries and Impact of Emerging Diseases of Fish and Shellfish in Indian Aquaculture

Indian fisheries and aquaculture is an important sector of food production, providing nutritional security to the food basket, contributing to the agricultural exports and engaging about fourteen million people in different activities. With diverse aquatic resources, the country has shown continuous and sustained increments in fish production since independence. Constituting about 6.3% of the global fish production, the sector contributes to 1.1% of the GDP and 5.15% of the agricultural GDP. The total fish production of 10.07 million metric tonnes, presently has nearly 65% contribution from the inland sector and nearly the same from culture fisheries. However, occurrence of disease has become a primary constraint to sustainable aquaculture production and product trade, thereby affecting the socioeconomic status of fishers in country like India. Different stress factors such as inadequate physicochemical and microbial quality of culture water, poor nutritional status and high stocking density can cause infection by opportunistic pathogens. Acute level of pollutants and suspended solids can directly bring about abnormalities and mortalities in seed fishes and adults. Different opportunistic bacterial pathogens and parasites cause devastating loss to fish industry in terms of high morbidity and mortality, diminishing growth and enhanced expenditure on use of chemicals as preventive and control measures. The prevention of fish diseases is essential for the betterment of the fisheries industry, the improvement of farming production, and the increase in fish resources. The details of fish diseases in Indian freshwater aquaculture system and potential for future development have been elaborated.