Cultivation of Organic Prawn

Rotational cropping of shrimp and a saline resistant, tall variety of paddy, locally known as Pokkali is a unique feature in the low lying coastal belt of Central Kerala. In these fields rice is cultivated only during the monsoon season that lasts from June to October. From November onwards salinity builds up and the submerged fields are utilized for a traditional type of shrimp and fish culture known as ‘prawn filtration’. Supplementary stocking using the seed of high value black tiger shrimp (Penaeus monodon) and Indian white shrimp (Fenneropenaeus indicus) has of late transformed this into a modified-traditional system of farming with substantially augmented income. This trip will provide a feel of the age-old traditional coastal farming system in Kerala.