Himachal government has extended the premium free insurance cover worth 50,000 to all the licensed fishermen operating in the state riverine sector with an aim to benefit about 11 thousand families engaged as full time fishermen in the state.
Prem Kumar Dhumal, the Chief Minister while attending the review meeting of the Fisheries Department said that any fishermen with permanent disability would be entitled to get 25,000. He said that fisheries were one sector where large number of possibilities for self employment existed and a step like insurance cover provision would only bring welfare to the fishermen. Currently there are 19 cooperative fishermen societies registered in the state while a number of welfare schemes for reservoir fishermen, fishermen accident insurance scheme, close season assistance scheme and risk fund scheme can be availed as well.
Himachal Pradesh has the distinction of being the first state in the country which introduced Trout Farming in private sector and was contributing over 50 tonnes of trout. The state is producing 7,337 tonnes of fish valued at about 37 crores and was contributing significantly towards providing quality fish while efforts to develop the First Mahseer Fish farm at Badon in tehsil Jogindernagar in district Mandi at a cost of 5 crores and a new farm on the bank of river Tirthan at Hamini (Kullu) worth 2.5 crores are also afoot. He further said that awareness campaigns were required to be launched to educate the masses not to overfeed the fish in the lakes to save them from dense population. He also emphasized on the need to avail of the services of National Fishfed to market its trout produce to fetch the fishermen remunerative returns.
