Kerala has launched a pioneering eco-sustainable programme for the development of its fishing communities, as State Minister J Mercykutty Amma inaugurated ‘Parivarthanam’ which charts to improve the livelihood skills of youngsters along the coastline and also improve the socio-economic upliftment of the fishermen community.
Conceived to manage the State’s aquatic and agricultural products through intelligent use of human resources, the scheme will promote processing and marketing of clean fish and its fresh products, said the Minister, who is in charge of Fisheries, Harbour Engineering and Cashew Industry.
At the ceremony, the Minister formally handed over to Finance Minister Dr T M Thomas Isaac a set of retort pouches carrying value-added products. Dr. Isaac also released a book encapsulating the details of the ambitious project.
‘Parivarthanam’, which means change, will be spearheaded by Kerala State Coastal Area Development Corporation (KSCADC). Conceived to also provide jobs to college dropouts and migrant workforce returning home due to COVID-19, the scheme envisages a rapid improvement in the standard of living of the state’s fisher communities by encouraging entrepreneurship.
‘Parivarthanam’ will also guarantee a fixed price to fish-catchers as a fair compensation. The mission ensures their participation in the distribution of unadulterated fish online and otherwise, the Minister said.
Local administration bodies and people’s representatives, too, will be part of the scheme, which will entertain private participation too. Besides the state-run KSCADC, the Union government’s Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT) will monitor procurement and processing of fish besides ensuring its quality. The state administration will oversee ‘Parivarthanam’, conceived to be self-sufficient in six months.
Present at the function were KSCADC Managing Director Sheik Pareeth, CIFT Principal Scientist Dr. K Ashok Kumar and Society for Advanced Technologies and Management Vice-Chairman Roy V Nagendran.
KSCADC, based in Thiruvananthapuram, will carry out the scheme through entrepreneur groups. It will groom potential leaders amid exploring market, conducting awareness and creating a network of consumers. The 2008-founded corporation will also train job-seeking youngsters as per the skill development guidelines and encourage them to complete studies.
‘Parivarthanam’ will extend help for dropouts doing manual labour to repay educational loans and aid their fisher families. It will handhold them to start CIFT-recognised seafood units.
The project envisages a range of value-added products in the processing stage. These include dry fish, pickles, marinated fish and cutlets. Also being launched in market will be fish curry in retortpouches, which enable the product to remain consumable for two years in normal temperatures. The packet will show colour strips: yellow for fresh and red for expiry date. Another sister products of KSCADC is value added dry fish products named “DRISH” which has already captured the State markets.
The “intelligent management” aims at environmental benefits as well. For instance, the fixed price will end the fishermen’s compulsion to rush from deep seas to the action hall, thus saving fuel. The scheme also encourages them to switch over to solar power.
Fishworkers will also be trained to handle facilities for frozen fish. Tie-ups with local aqua farms will guarantee supply of fish without break. The scheme will also sell live fish. Already a CIFT-guided processing unit has opened in Kollam, where a training programme for women just got over.
The unit will soon start distributing retort pouches. An online marketing system will subsequently be launched state-wide, giving direct jobs to 100 people.
