• Conducting ongoing fishery survey programs along the coast of Karnataka to estimate marine fish production across different crafts, gears, and species, both spatially and temporally.
• Establishing a robust scientific database detailing the distribution, abundance, biology, mortality rates, catch & effort, yield per recruit, exploitation status, and sustainable yield of exploited fish stocks in Karnataka.
• Mapping the spatio-temporal distribution of adult and juvenile finfishes resources, as well as operational ranges of crafts and gears.
• Completing geocoding of fish landing centers and providing the data to end-users.
• Compiling life-history sheets for over 200 species of finfishes and crustaceans, along with stock estimates for 32 commercially important species.
• Developing a continuous database on fishery-related environmental parameters to understand the correlation between fish stocks and the environment.
• Providing policy support and advisories including the preparation of management plans for marine fisheries in Karnataka, advisories on optimal fleet strength, guidance on cuttlefish fishery using Fish Aggregation Device (FAD), and contributions to the formulation of the National Marine Fisheries Policy.
• Estimating the Minimum Legal Size (MLS) for 72 species of exploited finfishes and shellfishes.
• Creating a mass balance model with trophic interactions for the Arabian Sea ecosystem of Karnataka and major estuaries of Goa using Ecopath analysis.
• Standardizing statolith-based methodologies for aging squids from the Arabian Sea.
• Establishing a database on the concentration of toxic trace metals in seawater, sediment, and fishes along the Karnataka coast, identifying hotspots.
• Estimating water quality parameters in mangrove beds, inshore areas, and sampled commercial fishing grounds to assess marine system productivity and health.
• Studying the impact of river discharges on nutrient and productivity profiles of coastal waters in Karnataka.
• Monitoring marine litter along beaches and identifying mammal sightings, including Indo-Pacific humpbacked dolphins and 47 species of seabirds and coastal birds.
• Popularizing mussel and oyster farming technology along coastal Karnataka, with the establishment of small to medium-sized mussel and oyster parks in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts.
• Introducing and promoting open-sea cage farming and estuarine cage finfish farming techniques, with standardized cage construction in coastal districts of Karnataka and over 1000 cages established based on center-developed technology.
• Introducing and popularizing Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) techniques along the Karnataka coast.
• Preparing spatial maps of suitable mariculture sites and geo-referenced inventory maps of existing aquaculture activities in Karnataka.
• Conducting underwater visual surveys of Netrani waters, off Murudeshwar, Mulki Rocks, St. Mary’s Island, Off Udupi (Karnataka) and Grande Island (Goa),
• Recording the species diversity and distribution of scyphozoan and cubazoan jellyfishes along Karnataka Coast.
• Identified ecologically or biologically sensitive areas for aiding in the protection and management of coastal and marine ecosystems along the Karnataka coast.
• Reporting and describing new species of finfishes and invertebrates, along with range extensions for several marine fishes.
• Studying and documenting best practices in trawl fishery along Karnataka's coast.
• Conducting awareness programs on conservation, protection of marine organisms, and sustainable fisheries management for fishers, fisheries, forest officials, and coastal police.
• Studying the attitude of fishers towards marine fishing regulations and computing empowerment indices among women involved in dry fish making.
• Estimating the economics of marine fishing operations, including operating costs and labor productivity of trawls, purse seines, and gillnets, and studying fish marketing channels through wholesale, retail, and tertiary markets.
• Providing consultancy services for industries in coastal districts on water quality and fisheries improvement plans
• Publishing over 850 research publications on various aspects of Marine Fishery Sciences in both international and national journals.
• Being recognized as Ph.D. guides at Mangalore University, Central Institute of Fisheries Education, and KVAFSAU by the scientists of the Centre.

Capture Fisheries

• Prediction and modelling of marine fishery yields from Arabian Sea off Karnataka using ECOSIM. Strengthened the scientific database -catch and effort of the exploited fish stocks and their distribution, abundance, biological characteristics, mortality rates, yield per recruit, status of exploitation, sustainable yield and techno- economics of fishing operations. The effect of bottom trawling on the benthic fauna off Mangalore coast was studied and reported. Log sheets in local languages prepared and distributed to sampled commercial fishing crafts to collect in-situ data on fishing operations, catch and effort. Participatory GIS program (PGIS) in marine fisheries for spatio-temporal resource mapping to avoid resource damage, identify seasonal juvenile abundance and evolve management strategies for conservation and sustainable harvesting. Innovative GIS based methodology developed for resource mapping of marine fishes to reduce CO2 emission from Trawlers. Purse-seining with light popularized through fishing demonstrations off Karnataka coast. Advisories cautioning the impact of this destructive fishing method were provided to the State administration. Limit reference points (LRP),YMSY & fMSY and target reference point (TRP), f0.1, were set for cephalopod resources (Karnataka) to guide rational fisheries management decision. Inter-cohort growth pattern of cuttlefish, Sepia pharaonis population (Clade C), distributed along the Eastern Arabian Sea (South-West coast of India) modelled. Protocols for age estimation in Indian squid Uroteuthis (Photololigo) duvauceli using hard- parts standardised. Protocol for tagging large sized yellowfin tunas with pop-up satellite tags was standardized. Bivalve harvesting areas classified developed for the DK District of Karnataka based on the US NSSP and EU Guidelines

Mariculture

• Technology of green mussel using Participatory Action Model, (PAM) developed for the fishermen of Saligramma, Karnataka. Integrated farming of mussels and shrimps for additional income generation involving the participation of shrimp farmers from Saligrama developed. Mud -crab fattening technique introduced and popularised in Karnataka. Technology for the offshore cage culture of finfishes and crustaceans in a participatory research program with the association of traditional fishermen of Karnataka was developed and demonstrated. Capture based aquaculture Technology for Karnataka in participatory research program mode with traditional fishermen of the State of Karnataka state was evolved and demonstrated. Concept for Spatial marine planning for success of Mariculture was developed. Suspended bivalve farming techniques refined and location specific protocols for farming of mussels using rack, raft and longline in estuarine and coastal waters of Karnataka developed

Social Science

• Participatory Poverty Assessment (PPA) using Participatory Poverty Assessment Registers (PPAR) used for assessment of poverty of fisher folk across all sectors of marine fisheries. Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) was developed for the Marine Fisheries Sector of Karnataka. Vulnerability index (V.I) developed to measure the vulnerability of coastal districts of Karnataka to climate change. Farmer Sustainability Index (FSI) developed to measure the adoption of sustainable practices in capture- based aquaculture.

Fishery Enviornment

• Seasonal and interannual variations of oceanographic conditions off Mangalore coast (Karnataka, India) and their influences on the pelagic fishery. Physiological biomarker response in bivalves integrated with environmental variability and a tool for site selection in bivalve farming developed. Levels of trace metals, Cd, Pb, Cu, Zn, Ni and Fe in seawater and their bioaccumulation in green mussel Perna viridis were monitored. Lysosomal membrane stability of haeomcytes in Perna viridis was standardized as a biomarker of environmental quality of bivalve beds of Karnataka. Sampling protocol for in situ collection of fishery and environmental parameters developed for validating chlorophyll and fish production. Water quality: of estuarine and coastal areas monitored seasonally and annually. Trace metals (arsenic and mercury) in mackerel, oil sardine, squid, crab and prawn was found to be within the safe limit of WHO. A study of the coastal beaches of Karnataka and Goa was carried out to assess the impact of marine litter.

Biodiversity

• Database for underwater visual census of coral fishes developed for the first time in Karnataka. Fauna and flora of marine, estuarine and islands off Karnataka estimated. Coastal birds and seabirds (41 species) occurring along the Karnataka were identified and photographed. Stranding’s, sightings and incidental catch of marine mammals, seaturtles recorded from and off the coast of Karnataka.The centre generated 79.28 lakhs of rupees through 14 consultancy projects (2004-2009)