India is one of the world’s largest farmed-shrimp producers, and shrimp farming questions appear again and again in fisheries exams — from ICAR-JRF and state fisheries officer papers to university entrance tests. This set of 20 multiple-choice questions covers the species, history, institutions, diseases and farming practices that examiners love to ask. Attempt all 20 first, then check the answers and one-line explanations below.
20 MCQs on Shrimp Farming in India
Q1. What is the scientific name of the Pacific whiteleg shrimp, the dominant farmed shrimp in India?
(a) Penaeus monodon
(b) Litopenaeus vannamei
(c) Penaeus indicus
(d) Macrobrachium rosenbergii
Answer: (b) Litopenaeus vannamei. Vannamei accounts for more than 90% of India’s farmed shrimp production.
Q2. In which year was commercial culture of Litopenaeus vannamei approved in India?
(a) 1995
(b) 2003
(c) 2009
(d) 2015
Answer: (c) 2009. A pilot-scale introduction was approved in 2003, and full culture was approved in 2009 under strict regulation by the Coastal Aquaculture Authority (CAA).
Q3. Which state is the largest producer of cultured shrimp in India?
(a) Gujarat
(b) West Bengal
(c) Tamil Nadu
(d) Andhra Pradesh
Answer: (d) Andhra Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh produces more than half of India’s farmed shrimp, led by the Krishna–Nellore–Guntur coastal corridor.
Q4. What is the scientific name of the black tiger shrimp?
(a) Penaeus monodon
(b) Penaeus indicus
(c) Litopenaeus vannamei
(d) Metapenaeus monoceros
Answer: (a) Penaeus monodon. The black tiger shrimp is India’s native premium species, though its production declined after vannamei took over.
Q5. Where is the ICAR–Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture (CIBA) headquartered?
(a) Kochi
(b) Mumbai
(c) Chennai
(d) Visakhapatnam
Answer: (c) Chennai. CIBA, the nodal ICAR institute for brackishwater aquaculture research, is headquartered at Raja Annamalai Puram, Chennai.
Q6. In which year was the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) established?
(a) 1961
(b) 1972
(c) 1987
(d) 2005
Answer: (b) 1972. MPEDA was constituted on 24 August 1972 under the MPEDA Act, 1972, and is headquartered at Kochi, Kerala.
Q7. What does WSSV stand for in shrimp pathology?
(a) White Spot Syndrome Virus
(b) White Shell Spot Virus
(c) Water Salinity Stress Virus
(d) White Shrimp Survival Vaccine
Answer: (a) White Spot Syndrome Virus. WSSV causes white spot disease, marked by circular white spots on the carapace and heavy mortality within days of onset, as documented in CIBA’s technical advisory.
Q8. What does SPF mean in SPF vannamei broodstock?
(a) Special Protein Feed
(b) Specific Pathogen Free
(c) Saltwater Pond Farming
(d) Selective Pathogen Filter
Answer: (b) Specific Pathogen Free. Only SPF broodstock from approved sources may be imported into India, and it is quarantined on arrival.
Q9. Where is India’s Aquatic Quarantine Facility for imported L. vannamei broodstock located?
(a) Kochi
(b) Chennai
(c) Bhubaneswar
(d) Kakinada
Answer: (b) Chennai. The Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Aquaculture (RGCA) runs the Aquatic Quarantine Facility at Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
Q10. What is the scientific name of the Indian white shrimp, promoted as a native alternative to vannamei?
(a) Penaeus monodon
(b) Penaeus indicus
(c) Penaeus merguiensis
(d) Fenneropenaeus penicillatus
Answer: (b) Penaeus indicus. CIBA’s trials found P. indicus robust and disease-resistant, and it needs no imported broodstock.
Q11. Litopenaeus vannamei is native to which region?
(a) The Pacific coast of the Americas
(b) The Bay of Bengal
(c) The Mediterranean Sea
(d) The east coast of Australia
Answer: (a) The Pacific coast of the Americas. Vannamei is an exotic species in India, which is why its introduction needed a formal risk analysis by CIBA and NBFGR.
Q12. Which authority approved vannamei culture in India and regulates coastal aquaculture?
(a) NFDB
(b) Coastal Aquaculture Authority (CAA)
(c) MPEDA
(d) FSSAI
Answer: (b) Coastal Aquaculture Authority (CAA). The CAA approved vannamei culture in 2009 through import of SPF broodstock under strict guidelines.
Q13. What is EHP, a much-feared problem in Indian shrimp ponds?
(a) A virus that causes white spots
(b) Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei, a microsporidian parasite causing slow growth
(c) A bacterial disease of the gills
(d) A nutritional deficiency
Answer: (b) Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei. EHP is a microsporidian parasite linked to slow growth and running mortalities; CIBA investigated it in Nagapattinam shrimp farms in 2025.
Q14. Shrimp belong to which group of animals?
(a) Molluscs
(b) Finfish
(c) Decapod crustaceans
(d) Echinoderms
Answer: (c) Decapod crustaceans. Shrimps are ten-legged (decapod) crustaceans, like prawns, crabs and lobsters.
Q15. In a shrimp hatchery, what does “PL” stand for in PL10 or PL15 seed?
(a) Pond Larva
(b) Postlarva
(c) Production Lot
(d) Plankton Larva
Answer: (b) Postlarva. Postlarvae are the seed stage stocked into nursery and grow-out ponds; the number denotes days after metamorphosis.
Q16. Which is India’s top seafood export item by value?
(a) Frozen squid
(b) Frozen shrimp
(c) Dried fish
(d) Canned tuna
Answer: (b) Frozen shrimp. Frozen shrimp remains India’s leading seafood export, with the USA and China among the largest buyers.
Q17. The traditional “bheri” shrimp farming system is most associated with which state?
(a) Gujarat
(b) West Bengal
(c) Odisha
(d) Maharashtra
Answer: (b) West Bengal. West Bengal’s tidal bheri systems integrate shrimp culture with traditional low-input farming in the Sundarbans region.
Q18. What does RGCA stand for?
(a) Regional Genetics Centre for Aquaculture
(b) Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Aquaculture
(c) Research Group for Coastal Aquaculture
(d) Rural Growth Centre for Aquafarming
Answer: (b) Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Aquaculture. RGCA, under MPEDA, runs the vannamei quarantine facility at Chennai.
Q19. Shrimp farming in India is mainly practised in which type of water?
(a) Freshwater only
(b) Brackish water
(c) Open ocean
(d) Hot springs
Answer: (b) Brackish water. Coastal shrimp ponds use brackish water — a mix of seawater and freshwater — in estuaries, creeks and coastal lowlands.
Q20. Why did Indian farmers switch rapidly from black tiger shrimp to vannamei after 2009?
(a) Vannamei needs no water
(b) Higher stocking density, faster growth and SPF seed availability
(c) Vannamei is a freshwater species
(d) Black tiger shrimp was banned
Answer: (b) Higher stocking density, faster growth and SPF seed availability. Vannamei tolerates higher stocking densities and, with SPF seed, gave farmers more reliable crops than disease-hit monodon.
Quick Revision Table
| Fact | Remember |
|---|---|
| Vannamei scientific name | Litopenaeus vannamei |
| Vannamei culture approved in India | 2009 (pilot 2003) |
| Top shrimp-producing state | Andhra Pradesh (more than half of output) |
| CIBA headquarters | Chennai |
| MPEDA established / headquarters | 1972 / Kochi |
| WSSV | White Spot Syndrome Virus |
| SPF | Specific Pathogen Free |
| Quarantine facility | RGCA, Chennai |
| Indian white shrimp | Penaeus indicus |
| Black tiger shrimp | Penaeus monodon |
How to Use This Set
Score yourself out of 20: 17–20 means your shrimp-farming basics are exam-ready; 13–16 means revise the institutions and disease questions; below 13, re-read the explanations and retry in a day. For deeper study, consult the official sources behind these questions: ICAR-CIBA (ciba.res.in), MPEDA (mpeda.gov.in), the Coastal Aquaculture Authority, and the Fisheries Infrastructure Development Fund’s introduction to shrimp farming in India.
Sources checked 24 October 2026: CIBA White Spot Disease technical advisory; CIBA–PFFI MoU on running mortalities (29 July 2025); MPEDA establishment and headquarters records; ResearchGate/CIBA–NBFGR risk-analysis record of the 2003 pilot and 2009 vannamei approval; FIDF introduction to shrimp farming in India (vannamei share, Andhra Pradesh share); ICSF report on Indian white shrimp trials.