Teachers, scientists and government officials in the fisheries sector from nine States will gather at the College of Fisheries, Yekkur, here from February 8 for a fortnight-long training programme on aquatic medicine.
According to K.M. Shankar, Dean, College of Fisheries, the Indian Council for Agricultural Research had made it mandatory for colleges teaching fisheries to include aquatic medicine as one of the subjects in their degree course from the academic year 2016-17. But the College of Fisheries in Mangaluru had introduced it for its four-year Bachelor of Fisheries Science course from the academic year 2013-14. After four or five years from now fisheries graduates could prescribe drugs to aquatic animals.
“The existing fisheries graduates have not learnt about aquatic medicine. The training programme will be for such persons who were now working as different professionals in the fisheries sector,” Mr. Shankar said.
He said that microbial diseases were a cause for concern for aqua farming. Farmers were using antibiotics, drugs, chemicals and pesticides, residues of which were found in fish. The use of drugs in aqua farming was not being regulated mainly due to lack of education and research. Mr. Shankar said that there was a need to create awareness on aquatic medicine among government and university staff. The training programme has been supported by the National Fisheries Development Board.
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