Union Minister of State for Fisheries L. Murugan on Thursday said that India had set a target of one lakh crore worth of seafood exports as the country was already the largest exporter of shrimp and the fourth largest exporter of marine products in the world.
Addressing a gathering at the valedictory of the III WORLD OCEAN SCIENCE CONGRESS – WOSC 2024 Sustainable Utilisation of Oceans in Blue Economy, he said the government and the fishermen were both for sustainable fisheries. The Centre was encouraging aquaculture and seaweed cultivation, he further said.
Earlier, speaking at the last panel discussion of the three-day science congress, distinguished Scientist in the Ministry of Earth Sciences Shailesh Nayak said that with changes happening, there was a need to assess the annual stock of pelagic fish, especially sardines and mackerel. There was a northward movement of fish.
If fishing were to be continued, the health of the ecosystem was important, especially that of mangroves, coral reefs and sea grasses. Sachin Chathurvedi, DG, RIS, spoke about the WTO negotiations on the fishing sector, study on ocean science and its governance. He also spoke on Island-based tourism, providing access to small-scale fishers to marine resources and markets.
