CIFE Mumbai

Policy Advocacy

The sunrise fisheries sector, though the fastest growing food production sector in India, cries for attention in terms of putting in place enabling policies, strengthening institutional capacities and developing professional human resources among others in order to develop the 60% of un(der)utilised inland water bodies, sustain the gains from capture fisheries, develop mariculture and reservoir fisheries, reduce huge post-harvest losses, increase value addition, modernise domestic markets and make export more competitive, encourage overall fish consumption and ensure nutritional security for all. Realising the importance of comprehensive and enabling policy in fostering development and the lack thereof in the fisheries sector, ICAR-CIFE had taken a lead role in developing National Inland Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy (NIFAP) in 2016-17 under the Chairmanship of Dr. Dilip Kumar, Former Director & Vice-Chancellor of ICAR-CIFE to prepare a Draft National Inland Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy (NIFAP) which was coordinated by Dr. Ananthan P. S. (Email: ananthan@cife.edu.in). About five Zonal Workshops and two National Workshops covering all 34 States & UTs were organized between 2006 to 2010 wherein more than 600 people representing all stakeholders participated. State-wise policy review and consultations helped identify sub-sector wise specific policy issues as well as evolve Draft Policy Framework with policy options and required interventions. This has been circulated to all States for evolving their State specific policies. The impact is already visible. States like Haryana, Assam, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu have already come forward to review and reorient their policies while Bihar, Odisha and Kerala have brought out their own Fisheries Policies and Fisheries Development Plans. Click below for Workshop Reports & Draft Policy Framework.