Indian experience of large scalecultured marine pearl productionusing Pinctada fucata (Gould) fromsoutheast coast of India: A criticalreview

In India, research on marine pearl culture was started in 1972 and the first cultured marine pearl from Pinctada fucata was rolled out a year later through the earnest efforts of Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi (CMFRI) at its Tuticorin Research Centre. Subsequently, improvements of the technology were made by various scientists involved at different centres of CMFRI focussing on different issues of marine pearl culture. Information on different aspects of marine pearl culture such as surveys for stock position, ecology of pearl beds, small scale experimental culture of mother oysters, surgical nucleation and spherical pearl and designer pearl production (‘mabe’) has already been published in various sources including few instances of technology transfers to entrepreneurs/fisher folk. Though, the experimental results were encouraging, anticipated technology transfer did not take place subsequently. Hence a large scale marine pearl culture demonstration was carried out and viability of the technology was redemonstrated at the Regional centre of CMFRI, Mandapam Camp during 1997 - 2003 through an ICAR Revolving Fund Project which resulted in wealth of information regarding different aspects of marine pearl culture. In the present account, the lessons learnt based on the published information as well as the data (unpublished) obtained in the large scale culture are analysed and classified under the critical activities of pearl culture and presented in the form of a ‘non systematic critical review’ essentially to arrive at the status of marine pearl culture in India.