What:  

• A pearl is a hard object produced within the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is made up of calcium carbonate, which has been deposited in concentric layers. The ideal pearl is perfectly round and smooth, but many other shapes of pearls also occur.
• Six species of pearl oysters occur along the Indian coasts,
  • Pinctada fucata (Gould)
  • Pinctada margaritifera (Linnaeus)
  • Pinctada chemnitzii (Philippi)
  • Pinctada sugillata (Reeve)
  • Pinctada anomioides (Reeve)
  • Pinctada atropurpurea (Dunker)
• India has one of the highest demands for pearls for setting in jewellery. The pearl oyster fisheries are located in two main areas:
  • The Gulf of Mannar
  • The Gulf of Kutch

What is in news :  Recently, the Trifed (Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India) inked an agreement with the Jharkhand-based Purty Agrotech for the promotion of pearl farming in tribal areas.

Benefits:

• Increased Farmers Income: The income of farmers in India is usually dependent on external factors like climate and this dependence often leads to their losses but on the other hand, Pearl farming is totally independent of these factors and gives one a high amount of profit.
• Eco-Friendly: Pearl farming is eco-friendly. It provides habitat for fish and improves species diversity.
• Water Purification: Filter feeder oysters also purify the water. A single oyster clears over 15 gallons of water a day.It accumulates heavy metals from the water, and removes harmful pollutants as well.

MAHITI FOR PRELIMS

Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India

• Under the administrative control of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs
• Established in 1987.
• Head Office – New Delhi
• Objective – socio-economic development of tribal people in the country by way of marketing development of the tribal products such as metal craft, tribal textiles, etc.
• Functions viz. Minor Forest Produce (MFP) development and Retail Marketing and Development.