Patna: Bihar is expanding financial protection for fish farmers through aquaculture insurance under PM-MKSSY. A one-day awareness workshop was held at the newly constructed Fisheries Development Bhawan in Mithapur to explain the scheme and its benefits to farmers.
The workshop was organised by the Department of Dairy, Fisheries and Animal Resources in collaboration with the National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB), Hyderabad. Progressive fish farmers and fisheries officials from across Bihar participated.
Insurance Support for Fish Farmers
Fisheries Director Tushar Singla said Bihar’s fish production has continued to rise, increasing from 9.69 lakh metric tonnes in 2024-25 to 10.28 lakh metric tonnes in 2025-26.
Under PM-MKSSY, the Centre aims to provide aquaculture insurance coverage to one lakh hectares of water area across India. The scheme covers ponds and aquaculture farms, along with RAS, cages, bio-floc and raceway systems.
Farmers can choose between basic and comprehensive insurance. Basic cover includes risks from floods, cyclones, pollution, drought and other natural disasters. Comprehensive cover also includes fish diseases and additional risks.
Up to ₹1.10 Lakh Incentive
The scheme provides a 40% one-time incentive on the insurance premium, up to ₹1 lakh. SC, ST and women beneficiaries can receive an additional 10% incentive, taking the maximum benefit to ₹1.10 lakh.
Insurance coverage can go up to ₹20 lakh, depending on the premium paid. For the one-time incentive, the eligible water-spread area is calculated at ₹25,000 per hectare, with a maximum limit of four hectares. For intensive systems such as RAS, cages, bio-floc and raceways, the limit is 1,800 cubic metres.
NFDB insurance expert Amar Kumar Nayak, an insurance company’s regional manager, NFDB Patna’s Albert Albin and the Joint Director of Fisheries also provided information on the scheme during the workshop.
Bihar Expands Fisheries Infrastructure
The state has created 7,990 hectares of new water area, developed modern ponds across 2,721 hectares of chaur land and installed 5,264 tube wells.
Bihar currently has 233 fish seed hatcheries, which meet around 70% of the state’s fish seed requirement. These hatcheries produced 2,753.45 million fish seeds in 2025-26.
The state also has 89 fish feed mills, producing around 50,000 tonnes of fish feed locally. The insurance initiative is expected to strengthen financial security for farmers while supporting the continued growth of Bihar’s fisheries sector.
Read Also: From Ganga to Kakolat: Bihar Plans Water Tourism Across 276 Sites
