Bathinda, Aug. 30 -- With the harvest season round the corner, shrimp farmers in Punjab, already struggling to make the crop economically viable, now find themselves in troubled waters after the US government imposed 50% tariffs on shrimp produced in India. According to the state fisheries department, a total of 985 acres of land is under shrimp cultivation in five districts of the south Malwa region - Muktsar, Fazilka, Bathinda, Mansa and Faridkot - with harvest set to commence in October. Official information says that in 2024, the state produced nearly 2,500 metric tonnes of shrimp. Trade estimates pegged Punjab's 2024 shrimp production at around Rs.80 crore, with buyers offering an average best rate of Rs.350 per kg. But this year, this rate offered has come down to Rs.270-280 per kg, attributed to the US government's new taxation policy by the export houses. As per officials and aquaculturists, engaged in cultivation of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, shellfish like shrimp, the US is the biggest market for Indian shrimp, largely managed by export houses in Andhra Pradesh after procurement from different parts of the country. With no independent market avenue for this export-oriented crop, Punjab aquaculturists are wholly dependent on the Andhra-based middlemen, further compounding their woes, says Lakhwinder Singh, a veteran shrimp farmer from Rattakhera in Muktsar. "A labour-intensive endeavour, shrimp farming needs an investment of Rs.10-12 lakh per acre. Any market fluctuation will result in economic disaster for a farmer with limited resources," said Singh, who was the first progressive farmer to adopt shrimp farming when it was introduced by the Shiromani Akali Dal government as a pilot project in 2016. Experts said this type of farming requires saline water, with a recommended salinity level of over five parts per thousand (PPT). This level is easily available in the south Malwa belt due to relatively higher groundwater level, which makes cultivation of conventional crops like wheat unfeasible. Another farmer, Sarup Singh Sandhu, said higher taxation imposed by the US will force farmers to undertake early harvest to cut down the cost of feed, medicines and labour. "Lower rates due to a trade war by the US have come as a shocker for us, as farmers may lose about Rs.1.50 lakh per acre. Shrimp farming requires heavy investment to make land ready for aqua crop. With not much help from the state government, shrimp farmers already end up paying commercial rates for power for the entire year for a 120-day crop," added Sandhu, also the president of the Punjab Shrimp Producers' Union. Nodal officer from the state fisheries department to promote shrimp cultivation, Amandeep Singh, said a drop of Rs.50 per kg from the last year's average rate of Rs.350 per kg had been reported and it will affect the economic prospects of farmers. "It is a wait-and-watch situation, as shrimp is a sensitive and market demand-driven crop. If rates stay stabilised at Rs.300 per kg, it will bring some relief to shrimp growers. We hope that the export houses will hunt for another market abroad, as shrimp consumption is negligible in India. We are also working to improve the acreage from 985 to 5,000 acres in the coming seasons as shrimp farming has a huge potential in the south-western part of Punjab," he added....