India Targets 30 Million Tonnes of Fish Production in Five Years

India has entered the development phase of a separate National Plan of Action (NPOA) for small-scale inland fisheries, a plan aimed at better livelihoods, closer coordination and sounder management of freshwater resources. Abhilaksh Likhi, Secretary in the Department of Fisheries, formally launched the phase at a two-day national workshop in Bhopal.

Who is behind the plan

The plan is being drawn up within the framework of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The Union Department of Fisheries is leading the work in collaboration with the Bay of Bengal Programme Inter-Governmental Organisation (BOBP-IGO). The workshop set out the priorities for the development phase, among them a proposed round of consultations with fishing communities and other stakeholders, and experts from fisheries institutions prepared a framework of activities.

The production and export targets

The Secretary said India has set a target of 30 million tonnes of fish production over the next five years, with seafood exports expected to rise to Rs 1.25 lakh crore. At present annual fish production stands at 19.7 million tonnes, of which inland fisheries supply roughly three-fourths, while seafood exports have crossed Rs 70,000 crore. He stressed that growth in output and in exports must go together with securing the livelihoods of small-scale fishers.

What the plan must address

• Fishing rights and the management of resources.
• Employment and decent work.
• Gender equality.
• Value chains and post-harvest trade.
• Disaster risks and climate change.

These areas were listed by P. Krishnan, Director of BOBP-IGO, as the ground the development phase is expected to cover.

Climate and water quality

The Secretary flagged climate change and worsening water quality as the main threats to inland fisheries, pointing to problems such as falling oxygen levels in water bodies. The plan, he said, must build climate resilience and should draw on the experience of fishing communities who meet these problems first hand. He also called for a mission-mode outreach programme so that the document reaches fishing communities across the country and translates into practical gains in livelihoods rather than staying inside government offices.

Scope and next step

The proposed plan covers fisheries in rivers, canals, reservoirs, lakes, floodplain wetlands, tanks and cold-water systems. The Secretary suggested that India's varied inland fisheries could serve as a model for the FAO to pilot region-specific approaches and carry the lessons to wider geographies. The plan will be finalised through stakeholder consultations before a public launch next month, after which implementation begins. Madhya Pradesh Fisheries Secretary Swantantra Kumar Singh, Joint Secretary Gunjan Krishna and FAO Project Officer Giulia Gorelli also spoke.