, 15 October 2016 : span style="color: rgb(84, 84, 84); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Bhubaneswar: With seafood exports been rising from the state, Odisha state has set a target of $3 billion (Rs 20,000 crore) in the next five years or by 2020.
Speaking while inaugurating a workshop 'Growth and Export Potential of Marine Products', Odisha chief minister, Naveen Patnaik said, "We has a huge potential to augment exports of seafood and have set a target to increase the seafood export by fivefold."
During the 2014-15 fiscal year, the state's seafood export was recorded at $309 million (2,069 crore) with 34,767 tonnes.
The state exported only $55 million (Rs 379 core) during 2000-01.
With having over 480 km long coastline with 24,000 sq km area within the continental shelf which has a potential for aquaculture development, state fisheries and animal resource secretary, BP Sethi said.
The state has 24,031 hectare of suitable brackish water government land which can be utilized for fish cultivation including L Vannamei Culture, which has high potential for export, Sethi adds.
The government plans to provide suitable land for brackish water aquaculture to beneficiaries under anti-poverty programme, persons under BPL category, fishermen by profession or by caste, landless persons and marginal farmers.
Also to educated unemployed persons, self help groups (SHG), primary fisheries cooperative societies, women cooperatives who are eligible up to 5 hectares land and partnership farms, technical entrepreneurs state owned corporations and exporters who are entitled up to 10 hectares and more.
By harnessing brackish water resources through leasing, the department plans to enhance shrimp production to 300,000 tonnes in the next 5 years, Sethi said.
To cope up with the increased production, infrastructure like ice plants, processing plants, refrigerated transportation vehicles, laboratories, equipment and machineries for culture activities, feed plants, road networks, electric connectivity to clusters will be required in addition to road connective to shrimp clusters, he said.