Shimla – The Himachal Pradesh government has approved two major schemes—the Risk Fund for Trout Farmers and a Minimum Support Price (MSP) mechanism for reservoir fish—to strengthen the fisheries sector and protect the economic interests of fish farmers and fishermen from natural calamities, market fluctuations and financial uncertainties.
Under the Risk Fund for Trout Farmers scheme, the state government has allocated a corpus of ₹1 crore to provide financial assistance to registered trout farmers suffering losses due to floods, cloudbursts, landslides and other natural calamities. Farmers will be required to pay an annual subscription of ₹500 to avail the benefits.
As per the scheme, eligible farmers will receive compensation of ₹25,000 per raceway in cases involving the complete loss of 2,000 or more fingerlings or yearlings. Compensation will be proportionately reduced for smaller losses. The maximum assistance will be restricted to two raceways, with an overall ceiling of ₹50,000 per beneficiary.
To ensure transparency, claims will be verified through field-level inspections and scrutiny by a state-level committee. The approved compensation amount will be transferred directly to the beneficiaries’ Aadhaar-linked bank accounts.
In another significant decision, the government has introduced an MSP of ₹100 per kilogram for reservoir fish under the Mukhya Mantri Machhuara Sahayata Yojna. The initiative is intended to protect fishermen from market fluctuations and prevent distress sales.
Under the mechanism, if fish is sold through the authorised auction system at a price below the stipulated MSP, the government will provide financial assistance of up to ₹20 per kilogram. The subsidy will be transferred directly to eligible fishermen through the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system.
The scheme, which will be entirely funded by the state government, is expected to benefit approximately 6,000 to 6,300 active licensed reservoir fishermen annually across Himachal Pradesh.
The government has also been implementing the Mukhymantri Machhuara Samman Nidhi Yojna, under which fishermen receive annual financial assistance of ₹3,500 during the fishing ban period imposed to protect fish breeding and conserve aquatic resources. The assistance is aimed at providing a degree of social security to families dependent on reservoir fisheries during the period when fishing activities remain suspended.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said the state government was committed to strengthening the rural economy by extending meaningful financial support to farmers, fishermen and other traditional livelihood groups.
He said the Risk Fund would provide much-needed relief to trout farmers suffering losses due to natural disasters, while the MSP mechanism would ensure better returns for reservoir fishermen and protect them from market uncertainties.
The Chief Minister further observed that the fisheries sector holds considerable potential for employment generation, rural prosperity and income enhancement, particularly in reservoir areas and high-altitude regions of the state.