Acqua insurance scheme on anvil
A pilot project on aquaculture crop insurance for both fish and shrimp crops under ongoing Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) is in progress
Acqua Insurance
- NFDB is implementing the pilot insurance scheme for shrimp and freshwater fish
- It’s applicable in flood-prone areas of AP and other parts of the country
- Department of Fisheries is nodal agency for the purpose
- DoF in process of identifying the eligible areas
New Delhi: The government is mulling an insurance scheme on the lines of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) for the fisheries sector. It may announce an aquaculture insurance scheme in the next few months, official sources told Bizz Buzz.
A pilot project on aquaculture crop insurance for both fish and shrimp crops under the ongoing Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) is already underway. The National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB) is implementing the pilot insurance scheme for shrimp and freshwater fish in the flood-prone areas of Andhra Pradesh and other parts of the country.
The Department of Fisheries (DoF), under the Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, has begun the process of identifying the areas where concerted efforts from all stakeholders are needed to take the benefits of aquaculture crop insurance to all eligible fishers. This, the sources said, will involve information dissemination efforts on the part of the authorities. For fisheries need to be informed about the concept and modalities of insurance.
The government is also keen that the stakeholders adopt the best management practices. The DoF, being the nodal agency for the purpose, is in regular consultation with the representatives of the NFDB, insurance companies, the Department of Finance Services (under the Union Ministry of Finance), the Central Institute of Brackish water Aquaculture (CIBA), and state and Union Territory governments. The objectives of the proposed aquaculture insurance scheme are not just to compensate the loss incurred by farmers due to adverse climatic conditions, disease outbreaks, etc. The government also wants to enable fishers to obtain credit linkage from financial institutions and promote farmers following better management practices.
In the pilot projects, the governmental contribution is up to 20 per cent of the premium amount for the general category and 30 per cent for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and women. The rest of the premium is borne by the beneficiary.
