In a recent report, a government official revealed that it has distributed Kisan Credit Card (KCC) to 8,400 fishermen in the country so far and efforts are being made to reach out to more people.
On the occasion of World Fisheries Day, the government has drafted two key Bills to boost the fishery sector in India which are expected to be placed in Parliament either in the ongoing or next session, it said.
On the other hand, the National Marine Fisheries (Regulation and Management) Bill 2019 and the other bill on controlling diseases in fish are yet to be approved by the cabinet, the official added.
“So far, 8,400-odd fish farmers have got KCC. This number is too small when compared to around 2 crore fish farmers in the country. We are going to review and take measures to step up our efforts to reach more people,” said Fisheries Minister Giriraj Singh addressing an event on the occasion of the World’s Fisheries Day.
The government had extended a short term credit facility, which was available to farmers pursuing animal husbandry and fisheries in 2018-19, he added.
Moreover, the government had announced the extension of the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) facility to animal husbandry farmers and fishermen to help them meet their working capital requirements in the Union Budget 2018-19.
However, as per sources, not many cards could be distributed to fish farmers due to a lack of awareness and delay in issuing RBI guidelines for the implementation of this facility. The government has faced a huge problem due to the lack of awareness among the fisherman about government schemes.
As per reports, there are 3,288 marine fishing villages and 1,511 marine fish landing centers in 9 maritime states and 2 union territories in India. About 38 percent of marine fisher-folk were engaged in active fishing with 85 percent of them having full-time engagement
