Introduction to indices and performance evaluation

Indices are a sum of a series of individual yes/no questions that are then combined in a single numeric score. They are usually a measure of the quantity of some social phenomenon and are constructed at a ratio level of measurement. The word is derived from Latin, in which index means "one who points out," an "indication," or a "forefinger." In Latin, the plural form of the word is indices. In statistics and research design, an index is a composite statistic – a measure of changes in a representative group of individual data points or other words. This compound measure aggregates multiple indicators. Features of Index numbers are as follows: Average: They predict or represent the changes that take place in terms of averages. Quantitative: They offer the accurate measurement of quantitative change. Measures of relative changes: they measure relative changes over time

Mapping of marketing channels and value chain analysis of some commercially important shellfish species landings in the East Medinipur district, West Bengal

West Bengal with a coastline of 158 km, two coastal districts, 171 marine fishing villages, 49 marine fish landing centres, 3.7 lakh fisher folk population (CMFRI Census, 2016) has contributed 2.6 lakh t of marine fish landings during 2020 registering an increase of 4.6% compared to 2019. The marine landings during the period were dominated by pelagic resources with landings of 1.25 lakh t (49%) followed by demersal (82,000 t, 32%), crustacean resources (41,000 t, 16%) and molluscan resources (8,000 t, 3%). The major resources contributed to the total crustacean landings of the state during the period were penaeid shrimps (66%) followed by non-penaeid shrimps (21%), crabs (13%) and lobsters (<1%). Similarly the major resources contributed to the total molluscan landings were cuttlefishes (71%), followed by squids (28%). Octopus formed a meagre landing, contributing nearly 1% of the total molluscan landings of the state. The major gears contributing to the total marine landings of the state were mechanized multi-day trawlers (54%) followed by mechanized gill netters (12%) and inboard bag netters (7%). Other gears such as mechanized bag netters, inboard gill netters, hook and liners and shore seiners together contributed about 27% to the total marine fish landings of West Bengal (CMFRI, 2020)

Fish Demand Paradigms and Perspectives Across Telangana, India

The fish supply in the country has continued to show unprecedented growth over the last two decades. However, the fish demand exhibits wide variation across/ within the different states, seasons, and species. For millennia, fish has been acknowledged as a great human food source and is valued as a complete diet. Since high malnutrition levels are linked to higher child mortality, this would ensure that the fisheries sector contributes to meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs: Goal 4- Reducing child mortality; Goal 5- Improved maternal health). Telangana is one of the main fish-producing and consuming states in the nation, where the per capita fish consumption of fish is one and half times the national average. The demand and supply relations are on par over the years

Economic efficiency of Tuna fishing and trade in Andhra Pradesh, India

Andhra Pradesh is the largest fish producing state in the country, producing 4.27 million tonnes in 2019-20 of which the marine fisheries sector contributes 13.2 per cent share of total fish production in the state. Tuna is one of the major species which lands in Andhra Pradesh and it contributes to 6.1 per cent of the total landings of tuna in India during 2019. In Andhra Pradesh, the total tuna catch ranged from 1,776 t to 14,589 t during 1985 to 2019 with an annual average catch of 5,615 t. The yellow fin tuna forms the dominant species in Andhra Pradesh fisheries with a total production of 6,330 t in 2019, which were almost insignificant landings in 1990. Of the 234 landing centers in Andhra Pradesh, Poodimadaka is one of the major fish landing centers situated in Atchutapuram mandal of Visakhapatnam district of Andhra Pradesh. This landing center offers a good market for the tuna trade in the state and elsewhere. The present paper explores the economic efficiency of tuna fishing operations and the trade patterns. The economic analysis of tuna motorized boats in Poodimadaka showed that for the multi day fishing (4-6 days) using theppa, diesel requirement was 150 liters per trip. Average cost of fuel is Rs. 15,000. The expenditure on food was approximately Rs. 2,000. Thirty per cent of net revenue was shared towards boat, engine and gears ownership and 70 per cent of net revenue was paid as crew share after deducting the input costs from the gross revenue. Average operating cost per trip was worked out as Rs.80, 000/

Economic evaluation of marine fishing operations in Purba Medinipur district of West Bengal, India

The marine fish landing in West Bengal, India during 2020 was estimated at 2.60 lakh tonnes, contributing 9.5% of the total marine fish landings in the country. The techno-economic evaluation of different fishing methods on the West Bengal coast was carried out to assess the economic efficiency. The boat and net combinations throughout the years have seen spectacular changes because of the enormous expense of fishing, the time taken for fishing and the prefunding of activities and support. Fuel accounted for the major share (56 to 66%) in operational costs of mechanized crafts. In motorized crafts, the contribution of fuel to operational costs ranged from 21.6% to 23.6%. Crew wages, which formed only 17.8 to 23.2% of the operational costs in mechanized crafts, contributed the major share (44.4% to 54.7%) in motorized crafts. In non-motorized crafts, more than 70% of the operational cost was towards crew wages. Net Profit Margin and Return on Investment were 16.2 to 22.9% and 0.5 to 1.07 for mechanized fishing operations, 21.1% to 59.3% and 0.42 to 1.85 for motorized fishing operations and 26.3% to 31% and 1.25 to 3.92 for non-motorized fishing operations, indicating motorized fishing operations to be the most economically efficient method. Capital Productivity and Input-Output Ratios were 0.65 to 0.85 and 0.47 to 0.65 for mechanized fishing operations, 0.38 to 0.70 and 0.13 to 0.23 for motorized fishing operations and 0.65 to0.67 and close to nil for non-motorized fishing operations. The gross value added (GVA) of all fishing operations worked out to about 50 % of the gross revenue, which is a significant contribution to the economy. In fishing tasks, the expanded expense of fishing per trip, the diminished landings and the ensuing decrease in the gross returns per trip have been cited as significant requirements influencing the financial returns from various fishing methods, by the fishers

Impact of COVID 19 pandemic on marine fisheries sector: A case study from Andhra Pradesh, India

This study discusses the impact of first and second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic on marine fisheries sector of Andhra Pradesh, India, covering the aspects of active fishing days, perception on reduction or enhancement of demand for fish, trends in price realisation, challenges encountered in marketing the fish, perceptions on government interventions as well as changes in socio-behavioural issues. The study was conducted during the period from June to September 2021, among a sample of 152 stakeholders involved in fishing and allied activities from Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari and Krishna districts in Andhra Pradesh. Average number of active fishing days in a month was found to be 11.44 during the first wave and 15.10 during the second wave periods. Nearly three-fourth of the respondents (73.68%) perceived that there was reduction in demand for fish during the first wave of the pandemic, and it was to the tune of 40%. Reduction in the daily earnings was reported to the tune of 37.09%. The challenges encountered in marketing the fish were, getting export orders, access to market, availability of storage, transportation and logistics. Peer interaction, time spent with family members and time spent in social media were higher than usual during both waves of the pandemic. Changes or disruptions in usual marketing channels were reported during both the periods. Satisfied perception was expressed on government interventions such as ration, timely advisories, health care and sanitary measures. A few positive impacts on fisheries observed during the pandemic were product innovations, new distribution channels such as online marketing, e-commerce and home deliveries, shortening of supply chains including elimination of auction at fishing harbour, lowering of ocean pollution as well as government reforms. From the results of the study, we propose socio-economic interventions to be taken up by concerned governments for ensuring that the impact of the pandemic is mitigated and also that any future pandemic can have minimal impacts on the fishing community

Market structure analysis of fish markets in coastal districts of West Bengal

West Bengal with three coastal viz., North 24-Parganas, South 24-Parganas and East Medinipur with 49 marine fish landing centres (3.9% of total marine fish landing centers of India), with about 81,067 fishermen families comprising of 3.69 lakh fisher folks (9.5% of the total fisher folk population of India) residing in 171 marine fishing villages (5.7% of the total marine fishing villages of India). Most of the fisher folk (about 70%) are traditional fishermen (Marine Fisheries Census, 2016). A major chunk (about 55,301 families) of the fisher population is socio-economically vulnerable as they are below poverty level and about 81% of the fishermen houses are Kutcha houses and 19% are Pucca houses. Despite Covid 19 lockdowns and the devastating Amphan cyclone, in the year 2020, the estimated marine fish landings was 2.60 lakh tonnes compared to 2.49 lakh tonnes in 2019 (CMFRI-Marine Fish Landings in India, 2020). The coastal districts South 24 Parganas and East Medinipur respectively contributed 49% and 51% of the total marine fish landings, with contribution of pelagic (49%), demersal (32%), crustacean (16%) and molluscan (3%) resources. About 4,014 mechanized crafts and 6,564 motorized and 476 non-motorized crafts are engaged in marine fishing activities in the state (Table 1). The mechanized and motorized sectors contributed 89.7% and 10.1% of the total landings respectively, while the non-motorized sector contributed only 0.2%. Although gill netters form 33% of the total fishing crafts in the state, major portion (about 60%) of the marine resources are landed by trawlers in West Bengal, mainly consisting of anchovies, penaeid shrimps, croakers, Bombay duck, pomfrets and Hilsa

Mapping of marketing channels and price ranges of commercially important finfish species in the coastal districts of West Bengal, India

This study was conducted to map the marketing channels and price ranges of some commercially important marine finfish species in two coastal districts of West Bengal. Nine commercially important marine finfish species were investigated. Different nodes were found to be involved in the marketing channel depending on the commercial value of the species, and a large gap was observed between the price in the retail market and the price received by the primary fisher. A large number of stakeholders are involved and find employment in the fish marketing chain as fishers, assemblers, processors, traders, wholesalers, retailers, transporters and loading and unloading workers. The price range of Bombay duck (Harpadon nephereus) was Rs. 25-50/kg at the auction centre level to Rs. 300-500/kg at the level of retailers in distant markets. For Silver pomfret (Pampus griseus), the price range had large fluctuations with Rs. 150-1000/kg at the auction centre level itself. When the commodity reaches the retailers in the distant markets, the price range was Rs. 350 to 1300/kg. The marketing chain for the flow of Orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides) was narrow with the nodes such as commission agents, assemblers, wholesalers and retailers, who play a major role in distributing the landings from the auction centre to domestic consumers. Processing and export nodes were not to be found. The price range was Rs. 200- 300/kg at the auction centre level to Rs. 400-500/kg at the retailer level in distant markets. The investigation exposed the range of actors required to bring the product from the landing centre through the different phases of distribution and delivery to final consumers. The value chain approach will be useful for the key actors such as fishers, managers and policymakers to streamline their operations cost-effectively, for increased earnings of the value chain actors and notable impacts on credit repayment

Risk assessment strategies in Indian agriculture — A disaggregate analysis

Despite progress in irrigation and technology, agriculture production and income are subject to large year-to-year fluctuations, playing havoc with farmers to invest in farming. These fluctuations also undermine the viability of the agriculture sector and its potential to contribute to economic growth as well as food and nutritional security. Most of the studies on Indian agriculture have looked at the instability in agricultural production at the aggregate level and have focused only on production (Hazell, 1982; Dev, 1987; Sharma et al., 2006). These studies suffer from two major limitations. One, they conceal the instability at a disaggregate level when different parts forming the aggregate follow different distributions. Two, the analysis of instability is restricted only to production and none of the studies have extended it to farm income; it is not seen whether fluctuations in price aggravate instability in production or reduce it, to mitigate the impact on farm income. Strategies to develop more appropriate risk management mechanisms require a better understanding of the nature and magnitude of risk at disaggregate levels, and by including prices. This paper proposes to fill this gap

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Not AvailableThis paper deals with the assessment of the technology development efficiency among the researchers in marine fisheries and identification of the influencing socio-personal characteristics. The study was conducted among 72 researchers of two premier fisheries research Institutions. The results revealed that the technology development efficiency index was 88.51 plus or minus 10.01. Among the 15 variables studied, the variables viz., communication behaviour, extent of linkages with extension and clientele systems, time utilization in research, participation in professional bodies, in-service training undergone, job satisfaction, job performance and technologies generated had positive and highly significant relationship with the technology development efficiency. The R super value indicated that all the variables taken together served as cause for explaining 57.60 % of variation in the efficiency level in the technology development process. The present results establish that the technology development process is efficient in marine fisheries.Not Availabl