Telangana was the only State to release fish seedlings free of cost into all the reservoirs, minor irrigation tanks and other water bodies for the benefit of the fishermen, said Panchayat Raj Minister Errabelli Dayakar Rao.
He was speaking here on Friday after releasing fish seedlings into Madikonda lake and Pedda Pendyala lake at Station Ghanpur.
Earlier, the fishermen had to buy seedlings and in the process, were exploited by the contractors. “Now, the State government has done away with the contractors by giving seedlings free of cost to the fishermen,” Mr. Dayakar Rao said.
The TRS government has provided two-wheelers and four-wheelers to fishermen to go door to door to sell fish in the rural areas or take the same to nearby markets, he added.
“Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is committed to supporting the cause of traditional vocations. The government’s initiatives for fishermen are aimed at improving their standard of living,” Mr. Dayakar Rao pointed out.
Warangal Urban district Collector Prashant Jeevan Patil appealed to the fishermen to register themselves with the fishermen cooperative societies to avail themselves of the benefits of all the government welfare schemes. Meanwhile, Animal Husbandry Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav released fish seedlings into Kaleshwaram project. “Fish seedlings will be released into all the water bodies across the State in a fortnight. The government has identified around 24,953 water bodies to release fish seedlings worth ₹52 crore,” he said.
ADILABAD Special Correspondent adds: Forest Minister A. Indrakaran Reddy and Nirmal District Collector M. Prashanthi on Friday released lakhs of fish seedlings into Swarna project in Sarangapur mandal as part of the promotion of pisciculture. The fish seedlings were supplied to the local fishermen community at 100% subsidy. Mr. Reddy said the State government was making all efforts to develop all the communities to strengthen the rural economy.
NIZAMABAD Special Correspondent adds: Minister for Roads and Buildings Vemula Prashanth Reddy said fish seedlings were being released into reservoirs and major irrigation tanks at a cost of over ₹4 crore to benefit the fishermen in the district.
He said under the integrated fish development project, the government has allocated ₹1,000 crore, of which ₹30 crore was given to the district. Fishermen were eligible to apply for as many as 31 schemes under the project, he said. Talking to reporters after releasing fish seedlings into Sri Ram Sagar Project (SRSP) on Friday, the Minister said Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao had chalked out a plan to support different sections of the society even before the formation of Telangana State.