More funds will be allocated for the development of fisheries to help those dependent on fishing in the State, Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda said here on Saturday.
Speaking after laying the foundation stone for a seafood processing plant to be constructed by the Karnataka Fisheries Development Corporation on its premises at Hoige Bazaar, Mr. Gowda said as he hailed from the coast, he knew the problems that people from fishing community faced. He said that the government would allocate more funds to benefit 2.5 lakh families from that community in the State which were dependent on fishing for their livelihood.
The seafood processing plant comprised a 500-tonne storage facility, a 10-tonne flake ice plant, a trolley freezer that produced 10 tonnes per day, and a plate freezer of six tonnes a day. The plant would also be equipped with an effluent treatment plant and a control laboratory to meet European Union standards for export, Mr. Gowda said.
During 2011-12, Rs. 100 crore had been set aside for construction of small ports through private public partnership, Mr. Gowda said. He said that the Cabinet had approved dredging at Karwar port before this monsoon at a cost of Rs. 35 crore.
The State government had sanctioned construction of a fishing jetty in Mangalore at a cost of Rs. 55.10 crore, in Byndoor at a cost of Rs. 10 crore, and a retaining wall in Gangolli at a cost of Rs. 3 crore, the Chief Minister said.
