Implementation Status of the Research Components (March - August 2002)

Component 2 - Analyses of Policies, Institutions and Support Services

Institutions and Support Services of the Fisheries Sector

India

One of the indicators of development policies and programs in India is the allocation of resources for the agricultural sector. The fisheries sector outlay as a percentage of the agricultural sector has been increasing continuously from 0.26% in the First Plan to 0.52% in the Fourth Plan. This shows the greater importance being accorded to the fisheries subsector.

India's fisheries development plans are aimed at increasing fish production, improving the welfare of fishers, promoting exports and providing food security. The first step towards developing a modern fishing industry was in 1898, when the then Madras President was advised to modernize the fishery to fight famine. It took almost 30 years for this idea to materialize. In 1948, it was decided during the All India Fisheries Conference in New Delhi that the country should apply for foreign assistance to create the necessary infrastructure for modern fisheries development. In 1952, a tripartite technical cooperation agreement was signed among the Government of India, USA and the United Nations. A year later, the Indo-Norwegian Project in Kerala started.

Other important projects in fisheries development followed. In inland fisheries, two important programs were implemented: Fish Farmers' Development Agencies and the National Programme for Fish Seed Development. In coastal fisheries, the Brackish-water Fish Farmer Development Agencies provide a package of technical, financial and extension support to shrimp farmers. Under the National Programme for Fish Seed Production, more than 50 fish seed hatcheries have been commissioned. In marine fisheries, major developments include construction of 30 minor fishing harbors and 130 fish landing centers, apart from the major fishing harbors namely Cochin, Chennai, Visakhapatnam, Roychowk and Paradip. They provide landing and berthing facilities to fishing craft. The Government also provided subsidies to poor fishers to mechanize their traditional craft, thus increasing their fishing areas and the frequency of operations with consequent increases in catch and earnings. Aside from these, there are two important welfare programmes for traditional fishers. These are 1) Group Accident Insurance Scheme for active fishers and 2) Development of Model Fishers' Village.

Substantial aid from several international organizations has been received by India. These include World Bank, UNDP, Danida, NORAD, ODA UK and the government of Japan. In 1979, the Bay of Bengal Programme was initiated which provides assistance in the development of small-scale fisheries, including enhancing the socio-economic conditions of fishing communities.

In 1928, the then Imperial Council of Agricultural Research (now called the Indian Council for Agricultural Research, ICAR) was established as an apex body of agricultural research in India. In 1947, with the establishment of the Ministry of Agriculture, the fisheries sector was organized and subsequently the fisheries research institutes under the Ministry were established. In 1966, most of the fisheries institutes were merged with the ICAR system. At present, India has a huge network of institutes under the different organizations to carry out research in the fisheries sector.

In the fisheries sector, aquaculture is on a steady growth path. In general, fish farmers are poor, practice traditional farming, and need financial resources. The need for credit support to harness the benefits of emerging market forces and technological developments has been realized, and some measures to enhance the flow of credit to the fisheries sector have been established. The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development as a re-finance agency for commercial banks, cooperative banks and regional rural banks manages the credit to the fisheries sector.

Other infrastructure and support systems related to fisheries include more than 376 freezing plants, 13 canning plants, 149 ice plants, 15 fishmeal plants, 903 shrimp peeling plants, 451 cold storage units and 3 chitison plants.