Hyderabad-based vaccine manufacturer Indian Immunologicals Limited (IIL) has announced a partnership with Central Institute of Fisheries Education (CIFE), Mumbai, an Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) Institute for the commercial development of vaccine against common bacterial diseases in freshwater fishes. 

IIL has forayed into Aqua business in October 2022 by launching products for aquaculture health market dealing with pond management and fish or shrimp gut management.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr K Anand Kumar, Managing Director, Indian Immunologicals Limited said, “IIL has introduced several innovative veterinary vaccines first to the world, like Porcine Cysticercosis vaccine, FMD+HS+BQ combination vaccine and Theileria vaccine. IIL is again the first in India to get to fish vaccines."

CIFE will provide technology for two inactivated bacterial vaccines, one for Columnaris Disease, a serious condition affecting numerous freshwater fish species, and other for Edwardsiellosis that cause high degree of mortality, leading to severe economic losses. Both the diseases are extremely common in freshwater fishes and is generally considered to be ubiquitous. 

Dr Priyabrata Pattnaik, Deputy Managing Director, Indian Imunologicals Limited added “IIL is planning to introduce vaccines and immunostimulants with tech transfer from various fisheries institutes under ICAR. Several fish vaccine candidates are currently being evaluated by IIL for commercialisation." 

Dr CN Ravishankar, Director and Vice Chancellor of ICAR-CIFE said “In support to India’s Blue Revolution, I am glad that CIFE and IIL have come together to partner in developing India’s fist bacterial fish vaccine”.

Currently there is no fish vaccine available in India on a commercial scale to prevent aquaculture infections.