Tauktae impact: Gujarat offers ₹105-crore relief package for fishermen

Battered by the devastating cyclone Tauktae, the fishermen in Gujarat will get a ₹105-crore relief assistance from the State government.

The relief assistance include 50 per cent of the damages caused to fishing boats or equipment with an upper limit of ₹35,000. For the completely damaged small boats the assistance is up to 50 per cent of the cost of the boat not exceeding ₹75,000.

In cases of complete damage to the trawlers, the State government will provide lumpsum relief of up to 50 per cent of the cost of the trawler with a ceiling of ₹5 lakh.

About 1,000 small and big fishing boats have sustained damages from the extremely severe cyclonic storm Tauktae, which hit the Saurashtra coast on the night of May 17 with the wind speed of upto 190-200 kmph. The coastal districts of Saurashtra are the hub for fishing in Gujarat.

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The decision on relief to the fishermen was taken on Wednesday at a meeting of the core committee headed by the Chief Minister Vijay Rupani. The State government claimed that the relief package of ₹105 crore – specifically targeting fishermen – is the first-ever in the State’s history.

For the fishermen who lost their fishing boats in the cyclone, the State has decided to provide ₹2,000 to each such fisherman through direct benefit transfer.

The Chief Minister informed that the devastating Tauktae cyclone had caused damages to jetties and other port infrastructures, as well as caused damages to fishermen’s fishing boats, fibre boats and trawlers as well as their houses and huts. “This relief assistance will help our fishermen to come out of the crisis and resume the fishing activities once again,” Rupani said after announcing the package.

Besides the relief for damages, the government has also announced funding assistance for fishermen seeking loans. An interest subsidy of 10 per cent on loans of upto ₹10 lakh will be provided for a period of 2 years on the decreasing outstanding amount.

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Also, input subsidy of ₹8,200 per hectare will be provided for fishing feed production, equipment etc. Notably, the coastal regions of the districts of Bhavnagar, Amreli, Junagadh, Gir Somnath had sustained severe damages. The government has set aside ₹80 crore from the relief package for the repair and restructuring of the port infrastructure along Jafrabad-Nava Bunder-Saiyad Rajpara and Shiyalbet coast.

Earlier, the State government had announced a financial package of ₹500 crore for the damages in horticulture. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited the State soon after the cyclone and announced an immediate relief of ₹1,000 crore.