With an aim of protecting the interest of fishermen and ending the fleecing of middlemen in the fisheries sector, the State government has decided to strengthen the cooperative bodies in the sector, Fisheries Minister Saji Cherian has said.
Replying to a question during the question hour in the Assembly, Mr Cherian said the Kerala State Cooperative Federation for Fisheries Development (Matsyafed), the apex cooperative in the fishing sector, would engage more cooperative bodies in the auction of fish catches by providing basic infrastructure to these bodies to store the auctioned fish.
This would enable the State to ensure better remuneration to fishermen by reducing the intervention of middlemen in the markets. Otherwise, the fishermen would be at the mercy of these middlemen once the catch landed on the coast. Matsyafed also had plans to start fish booths in 140 constituencies in the State. At present, the fish mart of Matsyafed and franchise of fish mart taken by the Cooperative department had presence in 52 consistencies in the State, he said.
Further, the State government had taken steps to identify suitable plots in 88 constituencies to launch fish marts, he said. The sanction for refurbishing 51 fish markets at a cost of ₹120.57 crore from the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) had been issued.
Further, the Kerala Coastal Area Development Corporation had received permission to construct 39 modern fish markets with the financial assistance from National Fisheries Development Board and various Central schemes in the State, the Minister said.
