Fishy Tales

JULY 12, 2007, 2.30 P.M.
Kolathur, on the outskirts of Chennai

Kolathur, a village 30 km from Chennai, is now an extended suburb of the metro. Like in the rest of the country, land prices here have shot up from Rs 5 lakh for a ground (local lingo for a 2,400 sq. ft plot) four years ago to Rs 40 lakh now. But that isn't why BT is writing about it-this little neck of the woods, is, arguably, India's leading producer of ornamental fish. Kolathur still looks like an overgrown village, with narrow muddy roads, small houses, a couple of old temples, petty shops, a few larger ones like Subhiksha, and rows and rows of shops selling ornamental fish and accessories.

Our (I and a photographer) first port of call is Zamam Aquarium, one of the largest in the area. Its plot, located on School Road, has over 50 acquariums and several ponds, oxygen cylinders and hundreds of polythene bags filled with water and fish. The front office (if one may use the word) looks like a modern day replica of Captain Nemo's wonder world on dry land-there's a mind-boggling array of fish, fish foods, ornamental pebbles, fish tank plants, aquarium purifiers and even artificial fish. "Business is booming," says M.S. Zamam, a second-generation pisciculturist in his 30s. "In 1999, I was generating a turnover of Rs 50,000 a month. Now, it is Rs 5 lakh."

Kolathur has six big dealers (Zamam is one of them), but during my 90-minute trip to this suburb, I saw at least 70-75 smaller shops run by smaller entrepreneurs. By all accounts, they are doing well for themselves. "They came with nothing two years ago, but most of them now own bikes," says Zamam.

Typically, they lease small plots, construct tanks and get down to business. But rising land prices is now forcing many people to look beyond Kolathur. Most people here have picked up the nuances of the business by trial and error and from long years of observation and study. Says B. Vincent, who runs Aquastar, another large dealer, with his elder brother: "I used to go to a fish farm behind my school where I worked for half a day every day. For every three days of work, I received two fish as payment. I learnt everything about them by keeping and breeding them at home."

Vincent has, obviously, done his homework well. "Collecting ornamental fish like guppies, mollies and goldfish is the second-most popular hobby in the developed world," he says, adding that it's also quite cheap to pursue. A round glass bowl with a goldfish, for example, costs only Rs 15, and the maintenance cost is negligible. But elaborate tanks, with fancy lighting, green sand, imported underwater foliage and sophisticated aerators can cost upwards of Rs 35,000. Individual varieties of fish can cost as little as Rs 5 for one goldfish to Rs 1,000 and more for rare fish like the golden carp.

Aquastar, incidentally, is also one of the few companies that breeds "rare fish" like blue dolphins, golden butterflies and carboro chiclids. There is, however, only a limited supply of such fish as the government does not permit imports. "Friends bring in a fish or two when they come from Malaysia, Singapore and other South East Asian countries." Many entrepreneurs, however, do not know the intricacies of breeding such fish. "We are seeing stunted fish with each passing generation because of this," says Vincent. "Sometimes, friends bring back two male fish as they can't distinguish between a male and female. So, we use a local fish to create a hybrid variety," he adds.

At a neighbouring marine aquarium owned by the Jayaseelan family, I get to see sea anemones, star fish, butterfly fish and clown fish-they are a riot of stunning colours-which are definitely more visually attractive than the guppies, mollies, goldfish, and 40-odd varieties of freshwater fish that are most abundant in India.

But, it is easier to breed freshwater fish than seafish. "Marine fish are wild; we have to replicate their habitat in toto, otherwise they won't survive," says U.S. Veeramaindhan, a marine biologist who breeds fish in Tuticorin. "But many people now prefer marine fish because of their variety and colours, and outsource maintenance to people like us," he says. The trade is thriving, but it has become more difficult than in the past. "Fifteen years ago, I generated revenues of Rs 100 a day, and earned a profit of Rs 50. Now, my revenues are Rs 30,000 a day, but profit margins are nowhere near what it was. Then, I can't shut my shop even for a day-fish need maintenance, and orders have to be executed," he says.

Now, this sleepy backwater is catching the national eye. Officials from the fisheries departments of Kerala, Andhra and Orissa regularly visit it to see how they can replicate the model in their states. The 1,800 families that run the ornamental fish industry in Kolathur may just be standing at the cusp of something bigger than they ever imagined.