The provisions in the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) will be revised to enable fishermen to buy trawlers and boats of their choice for deep-sea fishing, Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Parshottam Rupala said on Sunday. Addressing a convention of fishermen here as part of the Fisheries Ministry’s Sagara Parikrama programme, Rupala said fishermen had pointed out the difficulties they faced in the purchase of deep-sea fishing vessels as per the technical specification prescribed in the PMMSY scheme.
The changes will be made in the scheme to suit the needs of fishermen to get the fishing vessel of their choice, the Minister said, adding the State governments have been asked to submit the necessary proposals before the Ministry. Rupala said he could gather direct information on the requirements of fishermen during the Sagar Parikrama programme which he began from the Gujarat coast. This will help the Fisheries Ministry in formulating ideas for boosting the economy of the sector, he said. The demands from the fishermen of the coastal districts in Karnataka for increased kerosene quota for traditional boats and better infrastructural facilities including new jetties will be favourably considered, he said.
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The Union government will do everything to improve the lives of fishermen and thereby revive the economy of the fisheries sector in the country. The Sagar Parikrama, during which the problems of fishermen could be heard through beneficiaries’ meetings, was a step in this direction, Rupala said. Mangaluru South MLA D Vedavyas Kamath, who was also present, requested the Minister to allocate additional funds for the construction of a fishing jetty at the Mangaluru harbour.
