Kochi, Jun 13 (IANS): To boost sustainable utilisation of India's marine fish resources, the ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) on Thursday signed an MoU with the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) to collaborate on various research initiatives, including improved fishing advisories.

The MoU, signed by CMFRI Director Dr A. Gopalakrishnan and INCOIS Director Dr T. Srinivasa Kumar, envisages both institutes working together on joint projects to leverage their expertise in areas such as operational oceanography, fishery oceanography, fishing advisories, ecology, GIS application, biodiversity, fisheries management, and geosciences.

This will also involve sharing resources and personnel for focused research efforts.

Dr Gopalakrishnan said combining the expertise and resources of both institutions will be a crucial step for securing the livelihoods of coastal communities and the health of the ecosystem for generations to come, while Dr Srinivasa Kumar said this will empower the fishing community to optimise their fishing operations and catches.

The joint effort will also undertake joint exploratory surveys to collect vital geo-tagged fishery and ecological data besides the exchange of datasets between the two institutions for specific research programmes.