Composite fish culture for strengthening income of fish farmers: Micro-economic evidence from West Bengal, India

This study examined the economic aspects of composite fish farming with Indian major carps using cost concepts and the Cobb-Douglas production function. The study also highlights and elaborates on various aspects of resource use efficiency in West Bengal. The entire cost of setting up a fish pond in the research region was estimated to be roughly ₹1,92,168 ha-1. Variable costs and fixed costs accounted for approximately 95.07 and 4.92% of the total cost respectively. The return on investment per rupee was roughly ₹1.24, which suggests for opting fish farming as a profitable livelihood enterprise in the study area. The resource use efficiency demonstrated that the resources in fish production were not being used to their full potential. It has been observed that the production of fish can be increased significantly by involving more human labour and feed management. Loss of products owing to perishability, water scarcity during summer season, and non-availability of labour were the key challenges experienced during the production of fish. Post-harvest management facilities like proper storage structure and cold chain need to be developed to overcome the problem of perishability. As the cost of feed and labour are increasing significantly over the years, one must calculate projected profit before starting fish farming. Keywords: Carps, Composite fish farming, Economic analysis, Input use pattern, Resource use efficiency