Government to create special fund to boost fish production by 2020

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 24, 2018 gave its approval for the creation of a special Fisheries and Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF).

The fund size is estimated to be around Rs 7,522 crore, out of which around Rs 5,266.40 crore would be raised by the Nodal Loaning Entities (NLEs), Rs 1,316.6 crore through beneficiary’s contribution and Rs 939.48 crore through budgetary support from the central government.

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), National Cooperatives Development Corporation (NCDC) and all scheduled Banks will be the nodal loaning entities.

Key Highlights

• The creation of the special fund will enable the creation of fisheries infrastructure facilities both in marine and inland fisheries sectors.

• It aims to boost fish production and help achieve the target of producing 15 million tonnes of fish by 2020, which was set under the Blue Revolution.

• It will also support the government’s aim to achieve sustainable growth of 8 -9 per cent and thereafter take the fish production to the level of about 20 million tonnes by 2022-23.

• The fund will also boost employment opportunities for over 9.40 lakh fishermen and other entrepreneurs in fishing and allied activities.

• It will also attract private investment in the creation and management of fisheries infrastructure facilities.

• Further, it will encourage the adoption of new technologies in the fisheries sector.
 
Other Details

The fund would provide concessional finance to the state governments, union territories and state entities, cooperatives, individuals and entrepreneurs, for taking up the identified investment activities of fisheries development.  

Under the fund, loan lending will be over a period of five years from 2018-19 to 2022-23 and maximum repayment will be over a period of 12 years inclusive of a moratorium of two years on repayment of principal.

India's fish production is estimated at around 12 million tonnes annually.

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