What happened: Rajya Sabha briefing on holistic fisheries and aquaculture support
The Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, through Fisheries Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh (alias Lalan Singh), outlined measures for holistic development of fisheries and aquaculture, including welfare of fishers and fish farmers. The minister linked these steps to economic growth, food and nutritional security, employment generation, livelihood support and export earnings.
The minister also shared government-stated figures for fisheries’ contribution to value creation in 2023-24:
Fisheries contributed about 7.43% to Agricultural Gross Value Added (GVA).Fisheries contributed about 1.09% to the country’s total GVA.
Background and earlier position: constitutional split and scheme-led governance
Fisheries policy-making follows a constitutional division of responsibilities. Under Entry 21 of List-II (Seventh Schedule), “Fisheries” lies within State Governments’ purview. Under Entry 57 of List-I, “Fishing and fisheries beyond territorial waters” lies within the mandate of the Union of India.
Related current affairs
- Schemes for holistic development of fisheries in Kerala under PMMSY and other initiatives; approvals of Rs. 1413.91 crore
- Salient features of Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-Yojana (PM-MKSSY) under PMMSY
- Social security and aquaculture insurance support under PMMSY and PMMKSSY for fishers and shrimp farmers
- PMMSY and Blue Revolution support for deep-sea fishing vessels and related infrastructure in Tamil Nadu
- Govt schemes for holistic development of traditional fishermen and fish farmers in Tamil Nadu (PMMSY, FIDF, KCC extension, seaweed/mariculture support)
- MoFAH&D reviews progress of Tilapia Cluster under PMMSY in Chhattisgarh; roadmap for export-oriented cluster development