Parliament Question: Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF FISHERIES, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND DAIRYING DEPARTMENT OF FISHERIES LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 1506 TO BE ANSWERED ON 9TH DECEMBER, 2025 Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana 1506. Shri M K Raghavan: Will the Minister of FISHERIES, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND DAIRYING be pleased to state: (a) the details of programs undertaken by the Government for the welfare of fishermen of Kerala under Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY); (b) the steps taken by the Government to improve the cold chain infrastructure for fisherman community of Calicut in Kerala under the scheme; (c) the steps taken by the Government to prevent deep trawling in the coastal belt of the country; (d) the steps taken by the Government to support fishery exports sector in light of global tariffs; (e) the steps taken by the Government for the welfare of workers associated with fishery sector including those in fishery export sector; and (f) the details and the number of cold storage units have been set up for fishery sector during the last five years, State-wise? ANSWER MINISTER FOR FISHERIES, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND DAIRYING (SHRI RAJIV RANJAN SINGH ALIAS LALLAN SINGH) (a): The Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India during the last five years and current year (FY 2025-26) has accorded approvals to the fisheries development proposal of Government of Kerala amounting to Rs. 1410.40 crore under Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY). The approved activities inter-alia includes livelihood support to fishers during fishing ban period, support to traditional fishers for procurement of boats and nets,establishment of integrated modern coastal fishing villages, establishment of climate resilient villages, additional and alternate livelihood activities such as bivalve cultivation, cage culture, ornamental fisheries, fish markets & kiosks, cold chain facilities, live fish vending centres, need based training and skill development programmes and development of fishing harbours and marketing facilities etc. (b): The Department of Fisheries, Government of India under PMMSY also provides financial assistance for strengthening of cold chain infrastructure such as establishment of ice plants, cold storages, fish transport vehicles like motor cycle with ice box, three wheeler with ice box, refrigerated vehicles, insulated vehicles, live fish vending centre, fish kiosks, fish markets etc. Under PMMSY, the beneficiary identification is done by the respective State Governments/UTs. The Government of Kerala has informed that 36 Nos motor cycles with ice boxes, 10 Nos of three-wheelers with ice boxes, 1 No of live fish vending centres, 2 units of fish kiosks, 50 units of e-scooter for fish vending, 100 units ice box to fishers have been approved to the beneficiaries of Calicut to improve the cold chain infrastructure facilities. (c): Fishing activities within the territorial coastal waters are governed by the concerned coastal state Governments/UTs. The Department of Fisheries, Government of India issues advisories to coastal States/UTs for strict implementation of gear and mesh size regulations as provided under their respective Marine Fishing Regulation Acts (MFRAs), implementation of conservation and management measures such as uniform fishing ban for a period of 61 days every year for rejuvenation of fish stock, etc. The Department of Fisheries, Government of India has also prohibited the destructive fishing practices like bull or pair trawling and use of artificial light of LED lights for fishing in the Exclusive Economic Zone(EEZ), and similar prohibitions are also imposed within territorial waters by the coastal States/UTs. Vessel Communication and Support System are also supported to enhance the safety of fishermen at sea and strengthening of monitoring, control and surveillance measures. The maritime States/UTs have also been advised to issue necessary orders for prohibiting destructive fishing methods for fishing within their territorial waters, temporarily suspend the registration/license of fishing vessel(s) violating the Government orders, cancel the registration/license of such fishing vessel(s) on repeated violations, and to inform Coast Guard and other marine enforcement agencies about such violators, with directions to prevent operation of those fishing vessels.(d): The Department of Fisheries, Government of India, in consultation with the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) has taken up several measures such as sensitization and awareness programmes, consultations, Chintan Shivir on value addition, facilitating Buyer–Seller Meets to support fisheries exports. Focus is also given for identification of new markets towards diversification and deepening of the existing potential markets for promoting export through various trade delegations. Efforts are also underway to fast-track Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations with major markets along with the review of other existing FTAs. Further, the Department of Fisheries, Government of India held a series of meetings with the potential countries and deliberated on strengthening the trade relations, enhancing value addition, quality assurance, biosecurity and quality compliance, Research & Development (R&D) collaboration, training and capacity-building. (e): Under the PMMSY, welfare of fishers, fish farmers and related stakeholders is one of the priority areas. Accordingly, financial assistance is provided towards addressing critical gaps in fish production and productivity, quality, technology, post- harvest, enhancing quality of the product and increased income of fishers and fish farmers, insurance to fishers, livelihood and nutritional supports during the fishing ban etc. Under PMMSY, fishers, fish farmers and related stakeholders including fishery exports are eligible for assistance for taking up need based interventions for strengthening of the sector. (f): PMMSY envisages establishment of ice plants, cold storages of various capacities and modernization of the existing ice plants and cold storages. During the last five years, 730 units of ice plants/cold storages of various capacities have been approved to the States/UTs including Kerala. The state-wise details of ice plants & cold storage units approved during last five years under PMMSY are furnished at Annexure- I. *****Annexure-I Statement referred in part (f) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1506 for answer on 9th December, 2025 regarding ‘Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana: State/UT-wise details of ice plant & cold storage units approved during last five years under PMMSY: (In Lakh) Sl.No State/UT Units (Nos) 1 Andaman and Nicobar Islands 32 2 Andhra Pradesh 16 3 Arunachal Pradesh 2 4 Assam 9 5 Bihar 52 6 Chhattisgarh 9 7 Goa 8 8 Gujarat 25 9 Haryana 23 10 Himachal Pradesh 22 11 Jharkhand 32 12 Karnataka 127 13 Kerala 16 14 Ladakh 4 15 Lakshadweep 28 16 Madhya Pradesh 60 17 Maharashtra 83 18 Manipur 8 19 Meghalaya 12 20 Mizoram 12 21 Odisha 40 22 Puducherry 8 23 Punjab 2 24 Rajasthan 3 25 Sikkim 1 26 Tamil Nadu 40 27 The Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu 1 28 Tripura 2 29 Uttar Pradesh 1 30 Uttarakhand 2 31 West Bengal 50 *****