The Apatanis, one of the major ethnic groups of Arunachal, are known for practicing a distinctive form of agriculture, where rice and fish are grown together. The farmers have been practicing this method since the 1960s. The Apatani Plateau has a climate ranging from humid to sub-tropical, and the water-retaining capacity of the clayey, loamy soil helps in this unique farming technique. The farmers use household and agricultural waste, and excreta of domestic animals to make farming more organic and sustainable.
Women and men perform farm duties while preparing the fields for cultivating rice. Amongst the Apatanis, the women folk make up a major part of the workforce, when it comes to aquaculture. To this day, ancient and traditional agricultural technologies are utilised for cultivation, as modern tools, tractors and power tillers are not affordable to the farmers and are practically inaccessible.
Once the fields are prepared, the farmers transplant two to three healthy rice plants with an average of 26 cm between them. Fish refuges are also created within the fields. Three strains of fish species of common carp – Cyprinus carpiospecularis, Cyprinus carpio communis, Cyprinus carpiondus -- are stocked for 10 days from transplanting rice.
Fish enhances rice productivity (10-15 per cent) by controlling the growth of algae, weeds and insects, providing nutrients through fish excreta, and promoting the tilling of rice through the movement of fish inside the field. This eco-friendly practice has made the system unique, in terms of aquatic resource utilisation.
The zooplankton and algal life forms serve as natural food sources for the fish in the flooded rice fields to enhance aquatic productivity. For growth and development, the stocked fish in the rice field may have utilised available aquatic biomass and zooplankton through tropic interactions.
Therefore, unique integrated farming techniques like this require much-needed attention for better productivity and profitability to the small-scale farmers in Assam and other North-Eastern hill states.