Fisheries projects in State hit as Centre reduces grants

Work on fisheries projects in Karnataka has been hit as the Union government has reduced the annual funds to the State, said Minister of State for Fisheries K. Abhayachandra Jain.

The Minister told reporters here on Thursday that the work on two harbours planned at Hejmady Kodi and Kulai in Udupi district had come to a standstill following the Centre’s decision. These had been planned at a cost of Rs. 151 crore and Rs. 120 crore respectively, he said.

When the projects were envisaged, the State expected the Union government to bear 75 per cent of the total cost according to the funding policy then. The rest (25 per cent) was supposed to be borne by the State government.

“However, the new National Democratic Alliance government has reduced the Centre’s funding for the projects by 25 per cent making the cost sharing ratio between the Centre and State 40:60. As we have allocated only 25 per cent of the project cost in the budget, we do not have additional money for the projects,” the Minister said.

Mr. Jain said the State government had now requested the Centre to retain the original funding policy and was waiting for a favourable response.

Soon, you may be able to buy live fish

Toying with the idea of breeding fish in floating cages in reservoirs, the Department of Fisheries is also embarking on live fish marketing. This is to ensure that consumers get fresh fish, said Veerappa Gowda, Director of the Fisheries Department.

“We have started this marketing strategy with pangasius fish, which we are breeding on a pilot basis in 48 floating cages in Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS). We plan to extend it to other varieties across the State depending on the response,” he said.

The ‘Cage Culture’ has been started to ensure a good harvest. With an allocation of Rs. 3 crore for this, the department started with breeding of 5,000 pangasius fingerlings in each cage. Each cage is yielding a harvest of nearly 4,000 kg of fish, Mr. Gowda said.