PIB | 06 Jun, 2022
India
aims to double the marine product exports to Rs. One lakh crore from
the present above Rs. 50,000 crore within the next five years, Union
Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal said in on Monday in Kochi.
“This
target will be achieved through sustainable fishing, ensuring quality
and variety, promotion of coastal shipping and aquaculture, and by
supporting the entire fisheries ecosystem,’ said Goyal, addressing
media persons at the Marine Products Export Development Authority
(MPEDA), Kochi.
K.N. Raghavan, Chairman, MPEDA, presented a road
map to achieve the export turnover of Rs 1 lakh crore.
Goyal said that the Free Trade Agreements have been finalized with UAE
and Australia, while negotiations are in progress for such an agreement
with UK and Canada.
The Minister said negotiations to reach an FTA with
the EU will begin in Brussels on the 17th of this month. He
said the effort was to provide market access and new opportunities for
the country's exporters and consequently give fishermen a better future.
The Minister also ruled out the possibility of shifting the MPEDA
office from Kochi.
Earlier,
the Minister had an interaction with Seafood Exporters Association of
India (SEAI) at MPEDA and had an extensive discussion on various issues,
challenges and solutions facing the sector. He also met with fishermen
from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karnataka.
The Minister assured
interventions from the Ministry to minimize the hurdles on the import of
raw materials for value addition so that India can be transformed to a
seafood processing hub in the near future.
Goyal urged the
exporters to educate, assist and encourage fishermen to follow
sustainable measures in fishing and also to preserve the quality of the
catch so that it will fetch better returns. Indian missions abroad have
been geared up to help exporters in expanding their trade, he added.
The
Minister also had a discussion with stakeholders of the Rubber Sector
at MPEDA. He assured the government’s support for the further
development of the sector and exhorted all stakeholders to work towards
making India self-sufficient in rubber.
He reiterated the need for
increase in production and productivity to bridge the gap between
production and consumption of rubber in the country. Shri K.N. Raghavan,
Executive Officer, Rubber Board presented the road map for making India
self-sufficient in rubber production.
Goyal later visited the Spices Board Office in Kochi and interacted
with various stakeholders.
Various issues pertaining to spices and their
exports were discussed. The Union Minister urged stakeholders to rely
on quality and value for sustainable growth. Shri A. G. Thankappan,
Chairman, Spices Board and Shri D Sathyan, Secretary, Spices Board were
present on the occasion.