Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – This is the story of someone from Indonesia who accidentally discovered a mysterious fish. Thanks to the discovery of this fish, this person was appointed as a civil servant without selection and without needing to work.

His life is funded by the government. In fact, he was also awarded many awards and was able to help people all over the world.

What's the story?

The story begins with the visit of a man from Blitar named Moedjair to the South Java Sea, one day in 1936 (other sources say 1939). There he saw a mysterious fish in the coastal waters that he had never seen in his life.

He also took the five fish to take to the fish pond at home. In fisheries science, it is difficult for saltwater fish to live in fresh water.

However, this mysterious fish had a different fate. He can survive and even reproduce very quickly.

Of the five fish, two of them can lay eggs and hatch young. Since then, the mysterious fish has become the talk of the public and attracted the attention of a Dutch official named Schuster.

“It turned out to be Tilapia mossambica,” said Schuster, quoted from Sstudies on Tilapia Mossambica Peters (Mudjair fish) in Indonesia (1952).

Tilapia mossambica is a fish originating from Africa. It is not known how it came to Indonesian seas, however, after the discovery spread, people slowly began to cultivate Tilapia mossambica.

These fish are simply placed in swamps, ordinary ponds, aquariums and ponds. Miraculously, all of them survived.

As cultivation increases, this fish has a local name, namely Mujair. It is of course taken from the name of its discoverer: Moedjair.

Site History said that thanks to this discovery, Moedjair was given a prize of Rp. 6 per month by the Dutch government. He was also appointed as a civil servant without having to work.

During the Japanese occupation, their military presence played a role. They help spread tilapia fish cultivation.

Over time, after the Japanese occupation and post-independence fighting ended, the popularity of tilapia fish skyrocketed again. According to the magazine Landbouwkundig Tijdschrift (December 1948), this was due to the large number of people cultivating tilapia fish in ponds.

Tilapia fish, which can adapt to any body of water and reproduce quickly, are believed to be able to replace cultivation shrimp and milkfish which during the war period were completely destroyed. In this way, it is hoped that people can get their profits back.

The popularity of tilapia brings good luck to the discoverer. During independence, citing reports Detik.com, Moedjair was awarded many international awards and appreciation. The Ministry of Agriculture also gave him an award.

More than that, write research Tilapia: Biology, Culture, and Nutrition (2006), thanks to Moedjair these fish can also be found in Asia, Europe and the entire American continent. Even though Moedjair died on September 7 1957, the fish he discovered are still consumed by the wider community. And the name of the fish is not called Tilapia, but tilapia.

[Gambas:Video CNBC]

(mfa/sef)