New Delhi, April 3 (IANS). The Central Government said on Friday that India’s fisheries sector has now become a significant contributor to food security, employment and export earnings. A record investment of Rs 39,272 crore has been made in this sector since 2015.
According to the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, the sector employs about 3 crore fishermen and fish farmers at the primary level, while almost twice as many people are employed in the entire value chain.
According to the ministry, India has now become the second largest aquaculture producing country in the world and its share in global fish production is about 8 percent.
Fish production in the country has increased from 141.64 lakh tonnes in 2019-20 to 197.75 lakh tonnes in 2024-25, which shows an average annual growth of about 7 percent.
Exports of marine products have also more than doubled in the last decade. It has increased from Rs 30,213 crore in 2013-14 to Rs 62,408 crore in 2024-25, in which the biggest contribution is from shrimp export, which was worth Rs 43,334 crore.
India now exports more than 350 types of marine products to around 130 global markets. The US accounted for 36.42 per cent of the total export value in 2024-25, followed by China, the European Union, South-East Asia, Japan and the Middle East.
The share of value-added products in exports has also increased, from 2.5 percent to 11 percent and its total value has reached $742 million.
Meanwhile, the government is promoting high-value species such as tuna, seabass, cobia, mud crab, tiger shrimp and seaweed under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) to reduce dependence on select products. Along with this, investments are being made in cold-chain networks, modern fishing ports and digital traceability systems.
India has also received ‘comparability’ status under the US Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) in 2025, which will allow exports of marine products to its largest market to continue unhindered.
The government said that the work of installing Turtle Excluder Devices (TED) in shrimp fishing trawlers in the coastal states is also going on at a fast pace.
At the regulatory level, the sanitary import permit system has been completely digitalized and integrated with the National Single Window System, reducing the approval time from 30 days to just 72 hours.
In the coming five years, the government aims to further increase value-added exports, develop inland export hubs and strengthen India’s presence in markets such as the UK, EU, ASEAN and West Asia.
–IANS
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