Pokkali Rice farming plus Prawn and Duck farming

of

In continuation of blog on Pokkali ricefarming dt 15th April 2014 bearing no http://smundanat.blogspot.com/2014/04/Pokkali-rice-farming.html/dt15thApril2014 and http://www.Mathrubhumi.com/agriculture/animal-husbandary/Pokkali-!duck-to-sale-on-the-day-before - Easter-1.2706143 It is necessary to mention that while the Prawn farming was helpful for the better cultivation of Pokkali rice if done periodically in a equal duration of farming.In other words,the Prawn farming should be carried out between Mid November to April of an year and Pokkali rice farming from April to November.By doing this systematically observing The period of cultification strictly the advantage was that the prawn decay would become a manure for Pokkali rice farming and the decay of Pokkali rice farming would help prawn farming advantageously. Thus this process was proved to be doing wonders for both the farming in terms of yield and commercial value. But as the Prawn farming happened to be more profitable the period of prawn farming is stated to have increased .This resulted in poor performance in Pokkali rice farming.Prawn farming was more profitable. The major disadvantage for Pokkali rice farming was non availability of laborers .it is also stated that the Metro railwork in Ernakulam further deteriorated the situation as workers preferred Metro work to Pokkali work as the wages were more attractive in the Metro system. Earlier many years ago Kerala had 20000 hectares of Pokkali rice fields which reduced to just 1000 hectares today. The reason unscrupulous method of raising the paddy fields to land to build villas and flats all overvKerala. Now the Pokkali rice farming is restricted to Alapuzha,Thrissur and Ernakulam alone & that too on a small scale. Over above all these damages occurred to Kerala recently the Agriculture/Animal husbandry departments have suggested duck farming also so as to arrange ducks availablevforvEaster celebrations. But This additional third method is likely to destroy the Pokkali Rice farming.while the Pokkali rice farming and Prawn farming in equal intervals had helped both the attempts in accumulating more rice and in relation to commercial vallue.The third method suggested now would not only affect the fixed process existing but would jeopardize the farming of both prawn and rice totally.urgent interference by authorities would appear to be necessary to to promote the original two farmings.The idea of getting more profit would appear to be an illusion which is absolutely difficult to manage profitably. Sreedharan Mundanat 3rd April 2018