Fish import from Myanmar can tide shortage in Northeast — Experts

Our Correspondent

Imphal, Sep. 22 (EMN): Import of freshwater and sea fish from neighbouring Myanmar with the opening of the India-Myanmar land route last month through Manipur’s Moreh, a commercial border town will help in fulfilling the demand supply gap of fish in North Eastern states, said the trade experts.

Convenor R K Shivachandra of the state level committee for actualization of Act East Policy expressed that the traders in the region should explore the potential of aquaculture industries in neighbouring Myanmar particularly in Mandalay towns to import fresh water fish overnight considering the closer distance.

“One can import all kind of fresh fishes from Myanmar overnight once the government infrastructures are ready,” Shivachandra said.

Fish supply from other parts of the country takes a week or more to reach the north-eastern states. However, freshwater and sea fish from Myanmar could reach the region within a day or maximum of two days.

This came to light when a team of Manipur journalists visited the towns in Myanmar including Nyaung Shwe, Mandalay, Yangon and other markets during a weeklong tour organised by the department of Information and Public Relations.

The north-eastern region although endowed with abundant water bodies, continues to reel from shortfall of fish supply despite the fact that the region’s population consumes fish.

As a result the population continued to depend on fish imported from other parts of the country since the past two decades.

According to a well-known fish importer in Imphal market, initially they buy fish from other parts of the country in a small scale by personally going to Dimapur. “Now we directly import it from southern Indian states,” she said.