Gujarat declares 'Ghol' as state fish at Global Fisheries Conference 2023

Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], November 22 : Gujarat declared 'Ghol' as the state fish at the Global Fisheries Conference 2023 held at Ahmedabad on Tuesday.
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel inaugurated the two-day conference held in Gujarat Science City, Hebatpur, Ahmedabad.
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"Gujarat has become a policy-driven state under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We have also made policies for the economy sector which are benefiting both the fishermen and fisheries sector of the state. Today is a very happy day for the state that today we have declared 'Ghol' fish as the state fish," said Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel after the inauguration of the conference.
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With the aim of reaching out to the various domestic and global fisheries sector stakeholders and building partnerships, fostering collaborative efforts and promoting the Indian Fisheries sector, the theme of the two-day Global Fisheries Conference 2023 is "Fisheries and Aquaculture Wealth".
"Gujarat has the country's longest coastal base of sixteen hundred kilometres. Gujarat leads the country in marine fish production. Today Gujarat is exporting fish worth more than Rs 5000 crore. Gujarat's contribution to fish export is 17 per cent. These achievements show that Gujarat is the most suitable state to organize the first global fisheries conference. The blue economy has an important contribution to building both internal and international trade. More than three crore people are associated with the sector in our country. Before 2014, there was not even a separate ministry in the country for an area with such potential," said the Gujarat Chief Minister.
"Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, a fisheries ministry has been started for the first time in the country and along with this ministry, Rs 75,000 crore has also been allocated for the fisheries and aquaculture development fund. Due to this inland fisheries in the country have got a huge boost. Fisheries and agriculture production has doubled in the last nine years," the Gujarat CM added.
Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said that under the leadership of PM Modi, for the first time in the country, fishermen have been given Kisan Credit Cards with the help of which they are now promoting their business by taking loans from banks at token rates.
"To increase the infrastructure facility in the coastal beds of the country, a special war on Sagarmala has been started under the guidance of the Prime Minister. Due to this war, road electricity, rail connectivity and port connectivity are being expanded in coastal merit. Twenty-five thousand cooperative societies in the country are working in the Fisari sector through cooperatives. Many works like fish processing, fish dying, and fish curing are being done in an organized manner. The fishermen are getting direct benefits from this. India's coastal bed has become an important sector of the country's development," said the Gujarat Chief Minister.
Notably, In India, this promising sector provides livelihood, employment, and entrepreneurship to more than 2.8 crore (28 Million) fishers and fish farmers at the primary level and several lakhs along the value chain.
With a total of 174 lakh Tonnes (17.4 Million Tonnes) of fish production in FY 22-23, India is the third largest fish-producing country, contributing around 8 per cent share in global fish production. The country is also 2nd largest aquaculture producer. Our total fish and fish product export stands at 17.35 lakh Tonnes (1.73 Million Tonnes) valuing Rs. 63,690 crore (USD 8.09 Billion) in FY 2022-23. Frozen shrimp retains the top position as the major export item with an export earning of Rs 43,135.58 crore (USD 5.48 Billion) in FY 2022-23.