After completing his graduation, Satnam Singh Chakkal of Sanghol village in Fatehgarh Sahib went to Australia in 2007 to pursue post-graduation in horticulture and landscaping and spent nearly two and a half years abroad.
His experience there made him realise that success demands hard work. With this understanding, he decided to return to India and start working in his ancestral farm but with a modern and innovative approach.
Unlike traditional farmers who depend on a single crop, Satnam was determined to diversify. His family already had a poultry unit, which inspired him to explore integrated farming. He developed a model in which poultry and fish farming support each other, significantly reducing input costs while increasing overall income.
Satnam, now in his early 40s and has been practicing integrated farming for the past seven years, says that it can transform agriculture into a sustainable and profitable enterprise.
Owning nine acres and cultivating another three on lease, Satnam has successfully combined fish farming and poultry to create multiple income streams from one system. (Express Photo)
He developed fish ponds over nearly eight acres and simultaneously expanded his poultry unit on around two acres. Today, he manages around one lakh broiler birds. He says poultry feed contains nearly 25 per cent protein. Due to this high protein content, about 20 per cent of the feed consumed by poultry is excreted undigested. This waste becomes a natural and nutritious feed for fish in the ponds.
“I don’t need to spend on fish feed. My only annual expense in fisheries is the purchase of fish seed, which is available at a nominal price,” he says.
Satnam also uses pond water for irrigation after circulating around 20 to 25 per cent of pond water with fresh water at regular intervals. This nutrient-rich water is used to irrigate nearly two acres of crops. He doen’t use chemical fertilisers, saving money on fertilisers.
Satnam harvests around 20 to 25 quintals of fish per acre annually. This translates into an income of approximately Rs 2.5 to Rs 3 lakh per acre per year. At present, his poultry unit produces nearly six lakh broilers annually. After meeting all expenses, he earns a net profit of around Rs 60–Rs 70 per bird. He also practices fish diversity, selling nearly half a dozen species, including Rohu, Catla, Grass Carp, Silver Carp, and other varieties.
Parminderjit Singh, a progressive farmer from Kalewal village of Sultanpur Lodhi, has successfully adopted an integrated fishery and piggery farming model.
Owning 10 acres, with four acres under fish farming, Parminderjit started his fishery unit in 2022–23 and expanded into piggery in September 2024. At present, he rears around 100 pigs in a covered area of approximately 1.5 kanals near the fish ponds. Under this integrated system, he produces around 10 tonne of fish annually and markets over 100 pigs each year, generating a steady supplementary income.
Explaining the economic advantage, he said the input cost of fish farming remains extremely low as nearly 20 per cent of pig feed is excreted undigested, and this nutrient-rich waste, along with leftover feed, is directly utilised in fish ponds as natural feed. This reduces the need for commercial fish feed and cuts production costs.
He added that even when piggery profits fluctuate due to market conditions or higher management requirements, fish farming continues to provide stable and higher returns, often exceeding the combined income from traditional wheat and paddy cultivation.
Another major advantage, he noted, is the absence of marketing problems, as both fish and pigs are sold directly from the farm, ensuring better prices and eliminating middlemen.
Like Satnam and Parminderjit, many farmers across Punjab are adopting integrated farming. By combining crops, livestock, poultry, piggery, fisheries, and plantations, farmers are reducing costs while ensuring year-round income.
Gursimrat Singh from Ladha Munda village in Gurdaspur has been practising integrated farming for the past five years. A graduate with over 15 years of farming experience, he owns nearly 20 acres where he grows wheat, paddy, sugarcane, and potatoes. He has also developed a two-acre fish pond integrated with around 40 ducks and 50 poultry birds.
He circulates pond water on fixed intervals to maintain water quality and uses it for irrigation, cutting urea consumption by nearly 50 per cent. He has also planted eucalyptus trees along the fish farm, providing additional income and helping manage excess water.
Bachan Lal, a retired Sub-Inspector from Sanghol in Fatehgarh Sahib, entered fish farming in 2023 after retirement. He developed a 3.5-acre fish farm along with two acres of vegetable cultivation and conventional crops on the remaining land. He grows seasonal vegetables, wheat, and off-season crops like bottle gourd. His fish farm produces nearly 60 quintals annually, mainly Rohu, Catla, and Mrigal, with an average fish weight of over one kg and market prices ranging between Rs 100a dn Rs 110 per kg.
Ludhiana-based Charanjit Singh has adopted integrated farming over the past three years by developing fish farming on three acres, integrated with a poultry unit of nearly 1,250 birds.
PAU vice-chancellor Dr Satbir Singh Gosal said that these integrated farming techniques require no heavy farm machinery and can be done by anyone with simple training.