No plan to bring down fisheries subsidies: Govt in Lok Sabha

No plan to bring down fisheries subsidies: Govt in Lok Sabha

Subject: Government Schemes

Section: Agriculture

Context:

India had sought a 25-year transition period, contending that fisheries sector in the country requires government support since millions of fisher folks in coastal areas still rely on small-scale fishing for their livelihood.

They are given subsidies to acquire and modernise their relatively small fishing vessels, purchase equipment for vessels, and as insurance charges, the government stated

Fisheries Sector in India:

• Fisheries are the primary source of livelihood for several communities.
• India is the second major producer of fish through aquaculture in the world.
• India is the 4th largest exporter of fish in the world as it contributes 7.7% to the global fish production.
• Fisheries are the country’s single-largest agriculture export, with a growth rate of 6 to 10 per cent in the past five years.
• Currently, this sector provides livelihood to more than 2.8 crore people within the country. Nevertheless, this is a sector with untapped potential.
• The fisheries sector has demonstrated double-digit average annual growth of 10.87 % since 2014-15 with record fish production of 145 lakh tons during 2020-21 as per the Economic Survey for 2021-22
• Despite challenges pertaining to infrastructure, the measures by the Central government in the past recent years ensured that the fisheries sector continued to register an annual growth rate of more than 10%.

Pradhan Mantri MatsyaSampada Yojana (PMMSY):

• Pradhan Mantri MatsyaSampada Yojana (PMMSY) was launched on 10th September 2020.
• The aim of the scheme is to bring about Blue Revolution through the sustainable development of the fisheries sector over a period of five years (2020-2025.) PMMSY was announced in the union budget 2019-20.
• It has an estimated investment of Rs. 20,050 crores for its implementation during a period of 5 years from FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25 in all States/UTs, as a part of AatmaNirbhar Bharat Package.
• PMMSY aims at enhancing fish production by an additional 70 lakh tonne by 2024-25, increasing fisheries export earnings to Rs.1,00,000 crore by 2024-25.
• Thus it aims doubling of incomes of fishers and fish farmers, reducing post-harvest losses from 20-25% to about 10% and generation of gainful employment opportunities in the sector.
• The PMMSY is an umbrella scheme with two separate Components namely (a) Central Sector Scheme (CS) and (b) Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS). The Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) Component is further segregated into Non-beneficiary oriented and beneficiary orientated subcomponents/activities under the following three broad heads:
  • Enhancement of Production and Productivity
  • Infrastructure and Post-harvest Management
  • Fisheries Management and Regulatory Framework