Page 42 - NIS - English 01-15 September,2023

Nation 3 years of PM Matsya Sampada Yojana

The National Fisheries
Development Board (NFDB)
building in Hyderabad

FISH FARMING THRIVING WITH

REFORMS AND CHANGES

R.R. Chetan Raj from Nagar Gaon in Bangalore, Karnataka is an MBA in Finance and an interior
designer. The high demand for fish in the city as well as the schemes of the present central
government inspired him to start an aquaculture business. Initially, he started small-scale lobster
farming before moving on to tilapia farming. Freshwater biofloc ponds and Marel culture ponds
were built with the help of PMMSY in the years 2020–21. Rs 28 lakh was spent on this scheme,
for which he got financial assistance of Rs 11.20 lakh. He also gave employment to five people.
Earlier, he used to earn Rs 60,000 per month; now he earns Rs 1.20 lakh per month. Fish farming is
thriving as a result of reforms and changes.

Due to rising salt water levels in the village adjacent to the Rajasthan border, the land in Sirsa,
Haryana, had begun to become barren. Farmers in the area began farming lobster in brackish water
with the help of PMMSY. Sumitra, a fish farmer, says she began raising prawns in 2021. Three lakh
fish seeds were brought from Chennai. Although it takes 120 days, prawns worth Rs 25 lakh were
sold after 106 days, and the money was deposited into the account immediately. Sumitra began
shrimp farming on five acres rather than two and a half acres in 2022. Since there is supposedly
very little risk of loss, the number of fish farmers is growing.

40 New India Samachar September 1-15, 2023