The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved a new fishery scheme and extended the Fisheries Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF) for another three years up to 2025-26 on Thursday. The decisions are aimed at formalising the unorganised fisheries sector, facilitating institutional finance to micro and small enterprises, promoting aquaculture insurance and enhancing export competitiveness.
Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-Yojana (PM-MKSSY)
The Cabinet approved the PM-MKSSY, which is a central sub-scheme under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY). The sub-scheme will be for fishermen, fish farmers, fish workers, micro and small enterprises, and fish farmers producers organisations, among others.
The scheme aims to formalise the fisheries sector while focusing on micro and small enterprises with an investment of over ₹6,000 crore over a period of four years from 2023-24 to 2026-27 fiscal years in all states and Union Territories. Out of which, about 50 per cent i.e. ₹3,000 crore will come from public finance including the World Bank and the AFD external financing. The remaining 50 per cent is expected from the beneficiaries and private sector.
The sub-scheme is projected to generate about 1.7 lakh new jobs, with a special emphasis on employing 75,000 women. It also aims to generate 5.4 lakh continued employment opportunities in the micro and small enterprises (MSME) value chain. It will create a ‘National Fisheries Digital Platform’ to provide 40 lakh small and micro-enterprises work based identities. It will also support 6.4 lakh micro-enterprises and 5,500 fisheries cooperatives, providing access to institutional credit.
It will also address issues of aquaculture crop losses due to disease through insurance and enhance export competitiveness through value addition, value realization and value creation. The sub-scheme will not only increase incomes due to enhanced profit margins due to value chain efficiencies, but will also improve quality of fish and fishery products in domestic market.
There will be a gradual shift from conventional subsidies to performance-based incentives in fisheries. The programme will focus on improving value-chain efficiency and ensuring safe, quality fish by supporting 55,000 targeted MSMEs. It will also promote environment and sustainability initiatives; facilitates ease of doing business and transparency.
Fisheries Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF)
The Cabinet also approved extension of FIDF for another three years up to 2025-26 within the already approved fund size of ₹7,522.48 crore and budgetary support of ₹939.48 crore. In order to address the infrastructure requirement for fisheries sector, the union Government created the FIDF during 2018-19.
In the earlier phase of implementation of FIDF during the period from 2018-19 to 2022-23, a total 121 fisheries infrastructure projects with an investment cost of ₹5,588.63 crore have been approved for creation of various fisheries infrastructures.
Extension of FIDF will further intensify development of various fisheries infrastructures like fishing harbours, fish landing centers, ice plants, cold storage, fish transport facilities, integrated cold chain, modern fish markets, Brood Banks, Hatcheries, aquaculture development, Fish Seed Farms, state of art of fisheries training centres, fish processing units, fish feed mills/plants, cage culture in reservoirs.
FIDF provides concessional finance to the Eligible Entities (EEs), including State Governments/Union Territories for development of identified fisheries infrastructure facilities through Nodal Loaning Entities (NLEs) namely National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), National Cooperatives Development Corporation (NCDC) and All scheduled Banks.
The Government of India provides interest subvention up to 3 per cent per annum for the repayment period of 12 years inclusive of moratorium of 2 years for providing the concessional finance by the NLEs at the interest rate not lower than 5 per cent per annum. The Government of India also provides credit guarantee facility to the projects of entrepreneurs, individual farmers and cooperatives from the existing credit guarantee fund of Infrastructure Development Fund of Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying.
The completed 27 projects in its earlier phase of FIDF, created safe landing and berthing facilities for more than 8,100 fishing vessels, enhancement of fish landing of 1.09 lakh tones, benefiting around 3.3 lakh fishers and other stakeholders and creation of 2.5 lakh direct and indirect employment opportunities.
The new fishery scheme and the extension of FIDF are expected to boost the fisheries sector and create employment opportunities in the country.
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