In an important step to benefit the fishing community, the Union Government has decided to increase the ex gratia for a fisherman in case of death from one lakh rupees to 5 lakh rupees. This declaration was made by the Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying, Parshottam Rupala, in his address at the inauguration ceremony of the 13th Indian Fisheries & Aquaculture Forum held at Biswa Bangla Convention Centre, New Town, Kolkata on Friday.
The two-day event, themed “Enhancing Indian Water Culture and Aquaculture for Sustainable Development Goals”, opened on the 24th of February and will end on the 25th.
At the same time, minister Rupala stated that there are many schemes across the country to make the fishermen insured. He mentioned that credit cards specially designed for fishermen was to be launched in a way similar to the Kisan Credit Card. Characterised by around 3 crore fishermen families, the coastline stretching 8000 km of coastline and the government engages in measures to raise support for this important sector.
The Minister mentioned that the fisheries and allied sectors have a lot of growth opportunities, and explained that the total value of fish and fisheries exports have already reached ₹60,000 crore. The CSR (corporate social responsibility) has been established by the government to raise the income of poor people, and this figure has been increased to 1 lakh crore rupees.
Emphasizing the presence of the government’s dedication towards fishermen development, the minister, Mr. Rupala, has stated that since the year 2014, the center has allocated about Rs. 38,000 crore for fish farming and allied activities. This is contrary to the desperate execution of just Rs 3,680cr in this subject between previous regime years.
An increment in compensation and introducing supporting measures signify the government’s intention to lift the living standards of fishermen and act for the long-term development of the fishing sector.
