Thursday, March 10, 2011

Interview with Dr Abdul Manan Mat Jais, Haruan Research Group, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia

Q1: In your experience what is your perceptions of Indian Marine Industry?

A-First of all, I am not trained in Fisheries and Marine Sciences, but neurophysiology. I am just involves in environmental issues upon becoming member in 1990, and later appointed as one of Board Members to Society of Environmental Toxicology and Analytical Chemistry (SETAC) Asia Pacific since 1996. It take turn to chair SETAC Asia Pacific, now is Hong Kong, while the SETAC World is in US. My focus into fisheries and aquaculture had started since 1985, when began to carry out drug discovery based on local ethno-pharmacology Haruan Channa striatus, a tropical carnivorous air breathing freshwater indigenous species for wound healing. Since than I had realized our aquaculture industry is not systematic based on Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) and Good Aquaculture Procedures (GAP) to go global. Therefore, my view here is based on personal experiences and limited reading
As a great country India with second largest human numbers 1,193,163,000 as 2011 estimation, providing huge domestic market, but feeding such a number is a greatest challenge. Nonetheless, with land mass 3,287,263 km or 1,269,219 sq mi, India is having every opportunity converting those into food production industry. Smart planning as not to over excited with money making privately developed resorts or schemes that is now mushrooming, taking up thousands of acres as personal or family ownership or by company. These resorts establishing is creating landlord ship among few rich, but a kind of slavery to poor with minimal to bring home and India still contains the largest concentration of poor in the world
This seven-largest country by geographical area is surrounded by Arabian Sea on west, Indian Ocean in south and Bay of Bengal on east giving a total of 7,517 kilometers or 4,700 miles coastal line. The India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) stretching 200 nautical miles (370 kilometers) into the Indian Ocean is a smart calculative move encompassing 2 million square kilometers is providing protective enough fishing ground, a blessing to fully developed marine industry, and with your large labour force, there should not be any excuses to extend and improve your fishery. Although India is fast growing in IT, manufacturing sector, automobile and biotechnology, but balance in food production especially fishery must be parallel, as part of food security. For that I will be focusing here on fisheries and marine organisms, but not others such as shipping, tourisms, oil and gas
Indian’s staple food is rice, especially in the south and the east, but wheat is predominantly in the north, and many are vegetarians. However, man needs protein, either from plant, and aquatic organisms are good option, especially when land animals are having risks of diseases such as smallpox, Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or Mad-Cow Diseases (MCD), Japanese encephalitis (JE) and swine flu (H1N1). Nonetheless, most of the 40 % of all the identified fish species, about 8,400 are inhibiting freshwater ecosystem, but freshwater is now imperiled and at least one-fifth of all the freshwater fishes are already extinct or seriously endangered. Similarly, degradation of biodiversity in marine ecosystem is very alarming, and already by 1995, 70 % of the world’s marine fish stocks are either fully exploited or over-fished and depleted. No one pretty sure how much left and what technology can do to improvised the situation, and therefore India got to selvage whatever left, before they are gone forever. A joint relevant state and national government agencies corporation is necessary, plus full support of individuals as well as private sector in putting India self sufficient, or at least not totally desperately depending on imports
It is now, approximately 85 % of the world supplies of fish are from aquaculture, including marine, brackish and freshwater species. Still, fishery is an important sector providing jobs to millions, and contributing food to the people of India. The sector is just 1.07 % of the national GDP, 5.30 % to agriculture and related industries was valued at Rs 31,682.50 crores during 2001 - 2007, the Tenth Five Year Plan, which considered small. Accordingly, Marine Fisheries is involving nothing more than 1.5 millions of work forces, although total fishermen family are more than 3.5 millions in 3,305 fishing village along the coastal lines, considered long by any standard. Captured fishing is using mechanized and motorized vessels capitalizing about 1,332 landing centers, with 3.15 million tonnes marine fish products in 2007. The question here, is it enough, or perhaps may be Indians are not fish eating as much as others in Asians namely Japanese and even Malaysians. However your national Marine Fishing Policy, 2004, the establishment of EEZ together with the Draft Marine Fishing Regulation and Management Bill, 2009 should address all problems and making the industry sustainable. May be efforts and initiatives to improving, making Marine Fisheries more lucrative especially among young educated individuals, as well as becoming high impact projects are to be planned. Model of world best should be incorporated, and I will be very happy to be part of the program
Lastly, global warming should not be ignored for it may cause human health problems due to microbes, bacteria, and toxic algae blooms contaminating seafood. Dust from Moroccan desert for example can spark rapid growth of Vibrio, a genus of ocean bacteria that can cause gastrointestinal infections as well as infectious diseases such as cholera. As to India, stress sewer systems in mega cities namely Mumbai, Calcutta, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai not just tainting drinking water, but eventually contaminating sea. Although, more deaths and illnesses recently are due to natural disasters, heat waves, extreme cold temperature, tropical diseases such as malaria and mosquito borne diseases such as dengue, but do not ignore man-made disasters especially solid-liquid-gas toxic from urban and industrial waste

Q2:In your opinion what are the top three challenges which Aquaculture needs to correct to catapulate itself into a global player?

A-Again, this is a big question, and one needs some research on aquaculture industry in India in particular, and world over to really give specific suggestion. Nonetheless, here, I am giving you an overview based on personal experiences:

1.KNOWLEDGE: it is the key issue in many third and developing countries aquaculture as well as agriculture, in comparison to those developed nations. Many of us ignorant on legislation, regulatory and working ethics to make our product accepted by global consumers. Farmers in developed nation, had not achieved and established to what they are now without going through years of researches, not necessarily done by them, in every aspect of the industry. But in our case, we take things for granted, where our workers and those involves in the industry are not really by choice, but either by accident or worse of all on desperation for job. They either poor or asked to participate on political or government initiative. Their heart and soul is not really there. Furthermore, from time to time, each-an-every one of them is to be exposed to national and global progress. It is almost impossible to bring each one of them to attending exposition even internally, but to bring national and international expert(s) to them will be more practical. This expert, not just coming to visit to comment, to lecture and be gone, but actually spending quality time in situ to make them feel attached, gain confident and respect, looking into their problems. The expert might not be able to solve every single problem or not at all, but commitment must be there. Or else do not waste your time and money on the so call expert or consultant. With knowledge, people are getting confident, self-esteem and strong in many things. Therefore initial workshop must be there as part of the SOP, and scheduled at least half a year, but preferably quarterly, as a continuous learning. It is a part of human capital development

2.HUMAN FACTORS: mentality and attitude is important for each and every person to involve in anything, not just aquaculture. One need to be passionate with what one does. With enough knowledge acquired as personal investment, not necessarily formal education obtained from university or college, one will become dedicated to start with, believing and creating self confident. One needs to be given assurance on sense of belonging, ownership, and more importantly clear future that improving their standard of living. Need to picture to them path of life ahead. Psychology got to be right, to make them strong where everyone should realize, risk is always there, patients and passionate in a team work will keep them intact throughout. I have good experienced working not just with young farmers, but drug addicts rebuilding their self-confident, mentality, attitude and not giving hope. Knowing them, not just an individual, history and family background bring one closer, helps to indicate we care, and Indian are having such a good family relation. Good to dream the sweetness of success, but at the same time, failure is there to push one desire to higher level. Motivation should always be there

3.ENTERPRENEURSHIP: this is equally important for the person who is involve must himself or herself having a drive to succeed especially in the world of no-money-no-talk. Obviously majority of these people in aquaculture, are having minimal education, relatively poor and they need to be explained and guided toward step-by-step globalization. Personality got to be built, and make each of them feeling there is or there are changes, and they are now a different person. A simple cap or uniform, make them feel the different in quality of lives. Next obviously come investment or initiative from either government or donors or private company to be channeled directly to these newly transformed individuals. But, based on personal experienced in my country, never to give money or kinds or subsidize directly to individual(s), they will spend it or sell it, for they are poor and priority is food or clothing or shelter. Make it as monthly income or salary. There must be a scheme, as to bind them, but not to make them feel rigid. Money always the key. Good management, networking and establishing rapport with locals make lives easier. Consistent and constant monitoring is vital, for element of cheating always there, and working in a group produce better results
The THREE factors above has been incorporated in commercialization of my R & D a drug discovery on Haruan Channa striatus, and now the whole things is pursued as pharmaceutical production in an agro-industry setting. In my helps to local authority transforming negative attitude individuals to positive motivated persons give me satisfaction

Q3:What are the experiences of Being in the Industry?

A-As an academia, I the privilege travel extensively within Malaysia, and to many different continents of the world. My many experiences gave me the true meaning of lives, and respecting every one of those as God willing. Give and take, and vice versa make one a better approachable person. As a neurophysiologist, I am trained to believes and understand every cell is different, and every single nerve activity is different. So we are in the ocean of different individuals, and should be ready to face the world of differences. I had also inculcated into my personality the value of respecting others to make them feel part of the establishment or organization or group, pretentiously accepting idea(s) as not to humiliate anyone in public, but firmed when come to principle as to stamp your authority. One is need to be standing tall, not to be taken for granted. With such working barrier, you are always above them at all times, for once you lose this, it will be very difficult to regain. Keep a distant, for you are a friendly boss not a friend. You are a leader, not a follower, and you are a force to be reckoned, referral point, may be depending on situation is a shoulder to cry-on and always responsive to their need

I remember, it was happening long time ago during our farewell party to our chairman. One of a guard in his uniform was queuing to get his food (sate, a barbeque meats popular in Malaysia), and as a low rank officer, no one given him attention, but the waiter immediately serving me upon seeing me there. Instead of getting just for me I got more, and turned to him to placed some of the sate on his (the guard) plate. He was stunted and staring into my eyes without a word. I realized he was crying in disbelieved. From there on, he was one of my best in every aspect of security
Come back to marine fisheries or in any industry, no one is borne an expert. One must be ready to learn and adjusting oneself accordingly. I was once invited ( in 2005) to be a member team to develop a fishing hobour in one of the fishing state in Malaysia. The question was why me? The answer was they wanting people who can work, and people who are dynamic, progressive in thinking and willing to take risk. Obviously, the top management had heard of me, my working ability, and more importantly a personality that can go down to where the problem(s) is or are. Within week, from zero, I was able to put forward on the table, a very constructive planning not even the so called experts ever thinking along that lines. I am not a super human, just that knowledge is everywhere, and excess to internet is heaven. One could always excess to worldwide examples and models. The key words here are commitment, dedication and sincerity. Nothing is impossible, and God is always there to show you the way

Obviously my research in drug discovery on Haruan, now in commercialization stage with few product entering clinical trials, had really pushing me all the way to become an entrepreneur. I am more than happy to help and involves in any project India to develop helping poor to improve standard of living. With 27 years experiences as academia, panel for research grant and scholarships, and since 2003 one of the panel in health sciences with Malaysia Qualification Agency to foresee the improvement, progress, and quality of higher education in Malaysia made me an open minded, flexible and accommodative. Ready and happy to go into industry

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