Presiding as one of the bio-diversity hotspots in India, the North-Eastern states have been witnessing a staggering growth in the fisheries and aquaculture industries, largely owing to the impetus provided by the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) and such other initiatives by the government and private sectors alike. Needless to say, the influx of technology has also catalyzed the growth by empowering fish farmers to cater to the growing demand for fish and protein consumption.

However, most technologies and science-based solutions often fail to penetrate the unorganized markets and reach rural farmers. Diving deep into the market in the conduit to find the root cause of the predicament, two fishery science graduates and industry veterans - Tensubam Wanglemba and Romen Mangang due - realized the dearth of outlets for awareness and faster outreach among the farmers. This set them on a journey of connecting farmers with science-intensive technologies, which, in turn, led to the birth of AQUAONE Centre Manipur - a premier provider of consultancy, technical, and laboratory services for the fish farmers and general fishery enthusiasts.

Officially formed in 2022, AQUAONE Manipur’s inception goes way back to late 2019, when Tensubam and Romen started training aquaculture farmers to create awareness about technology implementation and solution provision through their venture MS Eengaal.

Awarded the coveted Excellence Entrepreneurial accolade by the North East Society for Fisheries and Aquaculture in 2022, MS Eengaal has been playing a pivotal role in the integrated development of the industry and the farmers. Born as a part of such a company, AQUAONE Manipur has emerged as one of the best technical service providers, powered by the National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB).

Apart from offering ICT-enabled innovations, the firm is highly acknowledged for its quality services and solutions like ‘farmculator’, which helps users in various calculations including pond liming, pond manuring, fish feeding, integrated fish farming, biofloc, and aquaculture economics growout. The firm also serves as an online store, distinguished by its fast shipping, round-the-clock customer support, and access to multiple payment options.

A Hub of Excellence
According to Romen, the industry is fraught with pressing problems like adulterated products, falsified data on the product packages, and a lack of manpower and service facilities, which have to be prioritized by the government. “In order to bridge the gap between farming and the scientific community, AQUAONE Manipur has taken the initiative to provide awareness and help implement certain projects and schemes for farmers. For instance, we develop detailed project reports (DPR) and schemes to enable the farmers to choose the right product”, he adds. Run under the aegis of the directors, Romen and Tensubam, the small yet adept team of experts collectively work towards integrating extensive farming knowledge from level-three academic institutions and the private sector, and further leveraging the data for the farmers.

“Unlike others, we rely solely on providing authentic, reliable, and scientific and technological resources to the farming community in their own language”, Romen explains. In addition, the organization has also partnered with eminent organizations such as the Central Agricultural University, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), NFDB, Krishi Seva Kendra, and ICICI Foundation, through which AQUAONE Manipur conducts sponsored as well as paid training programs.

Romen believes that the next generation of farmers will be driven by automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and the intensification of farming methods. With a constant endeavor to move ahead of the times, AQUAONE Manipur has been successful in rebounding from COVID and seeks to reinforce its training programs, laboratories, and quality processing to become future-ready. The company is currently focusing on manufacturing chemical usage calculators and other novel products and envisions being a onestop- shop for all fisheries and aquaculture service needs.