Aquaponics is a compact ecosystem, which combines fish and plants and improves upon conventional farming by reusing water, cutting out synthetic fertilisers, and letting food grow right in urban areas or places where resources are limited. The technique offers a direct answer to some difficult Indian agriculture hurdles like climate change, depleting resources, small and fragmented land, and inadequate distribution networks—all of which put the food needs of 1.4 billion citizens at risk. Nonetheless, the shift to aquaponics is slow, due to technical, financial, environmental, social and policy barriers. Building on earlier work, the present investigation charts 19 precise barriers through in-depth interviews of around 100 aquaponics stakeholders and then DELPHI study, which is followed by fuzzy DEMATEL analysis, focusing on the inter-relationship of Barriers. The analysis highlights insufficient research funding, policy ambiguity, and insufficient skilled workforce as root barriers, in addition to the operational issues of absent monitoring technology and fragmented supply chains. The results outline an actionable strategy for entrepreneurs and researchers that emphasize integrated policy frameworks and multi-stakeholder collaboration to strengthen the sustainable aquaponics approach in India’s agri-sustainable supply chains.