Fisherfolk urge Centre to end insurance woes

Panaji: Restrictions on the length of fishing trawlers, rising feed costs, and limited availability of seedlings and high-quality fish seeds within Goa are some of the challenges that the state’s fisherfolk face.
Goan fisherfolk, including fish farmers, have asked the Union ministry of fisheries, animal husbandry and dairying to address these concerns. They also emphasised the need for improved infrastructure and greater financial support in the sector.
The fisherfolk said that existing state regulations regarding the length of fishing vessels limit Goan trawlers from sailing out into deeper waters to fish. Meanwhile, fish farmers said that insurance companies refuse to cover disease-related losses suffered by prawn hatcheries, fish farms, and bio-floc units.
“At present, no insurance coverage is available to cover fishery crops, and due to that, banks are very reluctant to provide loans to the poor fisherfolk without any collateral,” said a statement from the fisheries department.
The statement added, “A robust effort is being initiated to start the insurance coverage for fisheries under the new flagship sub-scheme, namely, Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-Yojana.”
The fisherfolk brought up their concerns during a virtual meeting with Abhilaksh Likhi, the fisheries secretary with the Centre’s department of fisheries. The core objective of the session was to understand grassroots challenges, resolve existing issues, and formulate future govt policies.
During the meeting, beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana said that the scheme supported the growth of ornamental fisheries, sea cage culture, and prawn farming.
Officials assured the fisherfolk that recurrent issues with the banks were noted, and the ministry of fisheries is trying to sort them out with the cooperation of the finance ministry and bankers.