owing to the presence of large quantities of eggs, females have a markedly bulged abdomen. In a fully mature state when the females are pressed at the abdomen, the eggs flow out freely, while in males, there is free oozing of milt. For stripping, generally males of 2 to 10 kg weight range are selected. Females weighing more than 3 kg, yield 1 to 1.5 million eggs at a time.