8i 



the soil in places being heaped up in raised beds, small 

 plots rising from the excavated or lower level. With 

 the advent of the wet season the latter areas become 

 flooded and paddy is sown upon the raised plots which 

 rise like islands above the surface of the flood. 

 Concurrently a low bund is raised to enclose the general 

 area dealt with in order to retain a supply of water as 

 the rivers soon fall too low to maintain a proper inunda- 

 tion of the paddy planted plots. In the shallow stretches 

 of water thus retained by bunding, fish fry which came 

 up the river during the height of the flood are imprisoned 

 in countless myriads. After the paddy is harvested, the 

 water is still kept bunded to retain the little fish, which 

 are collected and sold as soon as the water begins to dry 

 up. Such or similar lands require but a limited expen- 

 diture to convert them into excellent fish farms for the 

 intensive culture of mullet, bamin, and eels if properly 

 selected within easy reach of a tidal supply of salt 

 water. 



The area of marshy estuarine land of this description 

 is practically unlimited ; much of it is too saline for 

 agricultural purposes and lies waste and unprofitable at 

 the present time. 



Procedure most likely to trove successful under 

 Local Conditions in India. 



As already mentioned two distinct systems of fish 

 culture are indicated as applicable to Indian saline 

 waters, (a) the natural, as practised at Arcachon and 

 Comacchio and (b) the intensive which hitherto has 

 never been carried out commercially except to a limited 

 extent in Japan where it is confined to mullet and eels. 

 Each system has its merits under definite conditions and 

 each is susceptible of many modifications dependent 

 upon the varying nature of local conditions at different 

 parts of the coast, upon the species of fish to be reared, 

 upon the acreage available, the financial resources 

 disposable, and in less degree upon a number of other 

 considerations peculiar to each location and its neigh- 

 bourhood. Each culture pond and each natural fish farm 

 must be designed independently with due regard to 

 these various influencing conditions ; the environment 

 of each establishment must receive full consideration. 



