The Becach-de-Mer resources of India

Beche-de-mer or the cured holothurian is considered a delicacy in some of the South-East Asian countries. \nThe entire quantity of about 30,000 kg produced annually at present in the country is exported since it is not \nconsumed locally. \nHolothuria scabra is the species almost exclusively used in this country for this pxu-pose. It is comparatively \nlarge growing to about 300 mm in length and weighing over half a kilogram in fresh condition. The \nholothurians are collected by divers in 2 to 6 fathoms depth of waters from February to September, the peak \nseason being in June to August. They are also brought in appreciable numbers in trawls. \nAlong the Indian coasts holothurians occur in large numbers in the Gulf of Kutch and along the southeast \ncoast. The holothurians are more abundant in the Palk Bay than in the Gulf of Mannar. In the \nLaccadive Islands and the Andaman group of Islands which have coral reefs and lagoons the large sized \nspecies of holothurians like Thelenota ananas, Holothuria marmorata and Actinopyga mauritiana are well \nsuited for this purpose. With proper exploitation of the totally unexploited grounds, the annual production \nof beche-de-mer can be increased substantially.