A special task force has been constituted for regulating use of antibiotics and other drugs in prawn cultivation. Minister for Health, Drugs and Family Welfare Kamineni Srinivas held a meeting with top officials of the Drug Control Administration, Health, Medicine and Family Welfare Department, MPEDA and Fisheries Department at NTR Health University on Friday. Director General of Drugs and Copyrights Ravi Shankar Ayyanar, Health, Medicine and Family Welfare Special Commissioner Sujata Sharma and representatives of aqua farmers interacted with Minister about the problems being faced by shrimp farmers. Addressing the media after the meeting, Dr. Srinivas said a task force consisting of top officials from all the line departments had been constituted to come up with recommendations to check abuse of antibiotics as it was very crucial for export of the produce. The recommendations would be implemented either by promulgating and ordinance or by making amendments to existing Acts, he said. The Minister said Andhra Pradesh was literally the capital of shrimp cultivation. A population of 20 lakh depended on shrimp and pisciculture for their livelihood. Revenue to the tune of Rs. 16,000 crore was generated by the aquaculture sector. Residue of antibiotics in the shrimp could result in containers being rejected at international ports. That would not only result in huge losses to farmers, it would also bring the country a bad name, Dr. Srinivas said. Unauthorised labs Unauthorised labs and sale points were misguiding farmers to use wrong antibiotics in wrong dosages. There was also the problem of shrimp accumulating antibiotic residues from the water used for cultivation, the Minister said.