Transponders to be installed in sea vessels across India’s coastal areas to protect marine life

Subject : Environment

Section: Places in news

Context:

The central government has approved “a project for the national rollout of vessel communication and support systems including transponders on approximately 100,000 fishing vessels in all coastal states and Union territories of India.

Details:

Transponders are wireless tracking devices that use radio frequencies to operate.
The project has been approved at the request of the Odisha government and in consultation with coastal states and UTs.
The devices will help the vessels avoid sea creatures that suffer injuries coming in contact with boats and fishing trawlers.
Many of them are caught in the fishing nets cast by the trawlers and die.
Identified sites are:
- Gahiramatha in Kendrapara district, Rushikulya river mouth in Ganjam district and Devi river mouth near Astaranga in Puri district in Odisha have been identified as the major mass nesting sites of the Olive Ridley turtles.
Project implementation:
- The project will be implemented under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampad Yojana scheme with 100 per cent government funding on a 60:40 cost-sharing basis between the Centre and state.
Implementing agency:
- The central government has entrusted New Space India Ltd, a central public sector undertaking under the Department of Space, as the implementing agency for the project.

What are the other important initiatives taken to improve India’s coastal security?

An Automatic Identification System (AIS) was made compulsory for all vessels above 20 metres after the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai.
Online ReALCraft (Registration and Licensing of Fishing Craft): Through this, verification and monitoring of a large number of Indian fishing vessels is carried out. This information is available to the Indian Navy and Coast Guard.
Biometric identity cards: These biometric identity cards have been issued to the majority of fishermen. The maritime security agencies through the composite card readers enable biometric verification of the identity of fishing vessel crews at sea.
Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA) initiative: It was announced by the Quad grouping at the Tokyo summit in 2022. It is a part of overall efforts for Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) on the high seas.
The initiative will track “dark shipping” and build a “faster, wider, and more accurate maritime picture of near-real-time activities in partners’ waters.” Further, the initiative will also integrate three critical regions in the Indo-Pacific – the Pacific Islands, Southeast Asia, and Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY)

It is a flagship scheme for focused and sustainable development of the fisheries sector in the country with an estimated investment of 20,050 crore for its implementation during 2020-21 to 2024-25 as part of Aatmanirbhar Bharat package.
Ministry: Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying.

Aim:

To bring about a blue revolution through sustainable and responsible development of the fisheries sector in India.
To double the incomes of fishers and fish farmers, reducing post-harvest losses from 20-25% to about 10% and the generation of gainful employment opportunities in the sector.

Implementation:

It is implemented as an umbrella scheme with two separate components namely
Central Sector Scheme:
- The project cost will be borne by the Central government. The entire project/unit cost will be funded by the Government of India (GoI) (i.e., 100% GoI Funding).
Centrally Sponsored Scheme:
- All the sub-components/activities will be implemented by the States/UTs and the cost will be shared between Centre and State.
- North Eastern & Himalayan States: 90% Central share and 10% State share.
- Other States: 60% Central share and 40% State share.
A well-structured implementation framework would be established for the effective planning and implementation of PMMSY.
For optimal outcomes, ‘Cluster or area-based approach’ would be followed with requisite forward and backward linkages and end-to-end solutions.
Approach:
- ‘Cluster or Area based approaches and many new interventions such as fishing vessel insurance, Aquaculture in saline/alkaline areas, Sagar Mitras, FFPOs, Nucleus Breeding Centres, etc.

Achievements:

From 2019–20 to 2021–2022, the Fisheries sector had an incredible growth of 14.3%.
Fish production has increased from 141.64 lakh tonnes in 2019-20 to 161.87 lakh tonnes (provisional) in 2021-22.
The sector achieved all-time high exports of 13.64 lakh tonnes, reaching Rs 57,587 crores (USD 7.76 billion), topped by shrimp exports.