India’s fisheries and aquaculture sector has transformed into a high-growth “sunrise sector,”. With production rising from 2.44 million tonnes in the 1980s to 17.54 million tonnes in 2022–23, India is today the world’s second-largest aquaculture producer and third-largest fish producer (FAO SOFIA, 2024).
Pillar of Food Security:
· Enhances Nutrition Access: Fish is often called “rich food for poor people” due to high-quality protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and micronutrients.
· Supports Dietary Diversity: With declining per capita cereal consumption, fish fills nutrient gaps, especially in coastal & riverine communities.
- Reduces Malnutrition Risks: FAO reports highlight fish as essential for combating hidden hunger. Government school mid-day meals in states like Odisha and Tamil Nadu include fish-based supplements.
Pillar of Livelihood:
- Major Employer in Allied & Primary Sectors: Fisheries support 28 million livelihoods, spanning capture fishing, aquaculture, processing, logistics, and retail.
- Expanding Rural Entrepreneurship: Growth of hatcheries, feed mills, cold chains, ornamental fisheries, and aqua start-ups in states like Kerala and West Bengal is boosting rural growth.
Role in Export Earnings:
· High Foreign Exchange Contribution: India is the 4th largest exporter of fish products globally. In 2021–22, seafood exports hit an all-time high of 1.36 MMT worth USD 7.76 billion (MPEDA).
Key Challenges Hindering Fisheries sector:
Production Constraints:
- Slow adoption of Recirculatory Aquaculture Systems (RAS), mariculture, and genetic improvement technologies.
- Weak extension services leading to limited training, water/soil testing, disease surveillance.
Ecological Issues:
- Overfishing, habitat degradation, climate-driven ocean warming.
- Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing persists due to weak MCS systems.
Infrastructure Issues:
- Post-harvest losses remain 20–30% due to lack of cold chain.
- Price discovery for fish is poor—markets rely on informal auctions.
- High rejection rates of prawn exports over bacterial contamination and antibiotic residue.
Social Constraints:
- Fishermen face credit barriers despite KCC.
- Declining fish farming areas due to urbanisation.
- Vulnerability to climate-induced disasters in coastal belts.
Way Forward:
· Ecosystem-based Management: Adoption of ecosystem-based aquaculture (EAA) and expansion of climate-resilient fishery villages, mangrove buffers.
· Strengthening Institutions: Unified MCS systems across coastal states and empowering Panchayats & FPOs for local water-body management.
· Enhancing Value Chains: Investment in cold chains, solar dryers, fish processing parks, and traceability systems and promote certification such as MSC/ASC for export competitiveness.
· Conclusion: With robust institutional reforms, technology adoption, and environmental safeguards, India’s fisheries sector can transition “from Neelkranti to Arthkranti”
‘+1’ Value Addition:
- India utilises only 40% of freshwater aquaculture potential and 15% of brackish water, vast untapped opportunity.
- ICAR-CIBA’s genetically improved Indian white shrimp reduces dependence on exotic species like L. vannamei.
- NSPAAD (National Surveillance Programme for Aquatic Animal Diseases) which is India’s first nationwide fish/prawn disease monitoring network.
- India’s fisheries provide livelihoods to 28 million people, many from coastal and marginalised communities.
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