Plan Your Career: Fishing for sustainable, eco sensitive livelihood

Aquatic life always fascinated me. My home is a little aquarium with fish tanks and tiny ponds. I have completed Class 12 exams. I would like to study fisheries. How should I go about it? What are the possibilities and prospects? (Renuka SK)

Fisheries industry plays a significant role in human life, economy and biodiversity. As an industry connecting the three key segments, it involves growing, catching, processing, marketing and conservation. Fisheries Science emerged as an academic discipline as part of inland, marine, farming and animal husbandry to take a maximum advantage by understanding and managing fisheries. 

Fisheries management ensures sustainability of aquatic habitats and aquaculture. It refers to by-products and value added products. For India, it is an important economic activity with high potential. It moved up to the second largest country in aquaculture products from 46% in the early 1980s to 85% in recent years. 

It has diversified considerably to reach an impressive growth rate annually. The medical effects of fish are continually developed and so is pharmaceutical industry. The objectives of Fisheries Education are to train technically competent personnel for transfer of technology, to assist in R&D, and training of professionals to plan, develop and execute fisheries. 

Hopefully, you have completed Class 12 with Biology. It is the primary to enter into undergraduate courses like Bachelor of Fisheries Science (B.F.Sc), that is usually 4-year degree course, and other three-year Bachelor courses are B.Sc., in Fisheries and Aquaculture studies. 

At M.F.Sc in postgraduate level, one can specialize in branches and move further to do a doctorate. At Masters level, one also has an option of doing Masters in Business Administration (MBA) to obtain management skills. B.F.Sc and MBA is a good career path to go. M.Sc., specialisation can be done in Aquatic Biology and Fisheries, Coastal Aquaculture and Marine, Fishery Science and Aquaculture, Industrial Fisheries, Limnology and Fisheries, Marine Biology and Fisheries.

 If you intend to study in any national institute, the selection for Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is made through state or central level entrance examination. You have to check on application procedures and examination dates. Many central institutes that offer studies in the field of fisheries. There are also different Fisheries Colleges under State Agricultural Universities. After the study one can work as an aquaculturist, breeders, farm managers, exporters and traders. The jobs are aplenty in both government and private sectors. 

One can also emerge as an entrepreneur. One can work in various capacities like Instructor, Research Assistant, Biochemist, Fisheries Biologist, Fisheries Extension Officer and Development Officer (AFDO & DFDO), technician etc.

Some of the central and state agencies that recruit are Marine Product Export Development Authority (MPEDA), Export Inspection Agency (EIA), Coastal Aquaculture Authority of India (CAA), Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI), Fisheries Survey of India (FSI), NABARD and National Institute of Oceanography. 

Others are Fisheries Development Board, Food Department, Banks, Food Processing Technology and Fish Breeding Farms. Jobs in the private sector include seafood processing units, aqua feed plants, fishing gear industries, fish disease diagnostic centres, agri-clinics, management of fish farms and deep sea exploration. There are also jobs in the offing in other countries. 

Read more on related literature and prepare for your exams. Summer is the time to get ready and get hooked to blue revolution.