M'lore to have modern fish auction centre

A special package for fishermen will be announced by deputy chief minister B S Yediyurappa which will also deal with the long standing demand for diesel and kerosene subsidy, disclosed B Nagaraj Shetty, minister for fisheries, muzrai and horticulture here on Thursday.

He was speaking after laying the foundation stone for the fish auction hall and rest room for women at the Old Port. The hall is being built by the state government jointly with Metro Cash and Carry India which has provided Rs 55 lakh. The auction centre will be handed over to the department of fisheries once it is completed.

The projects have been provided with Rs 90 lakh under the ASIDE scheme of the Centre. Drinking water will also be provided at the Old Port at a cost of Rs 5 lakh. Yogish Bhat, MLA, who has released the amount from the MLAs' Fund, laid the foundation stone.

Shetty said that the government has taken up four schemes along with Metro Cash and Carry India which is providing Rs 1.5 crore. He also promised the fishing folk that he will hold meetings once a month with Seetharama Suvarna to find out their problems.

Michael Keelan, director, food buying, Metro Cash and Carry India said his company was delighted to build a world class auction centre at Mangalore which would help improve hygiene and also reduce wastage. This will also have an impact on the quality of fish available in markets such as Bangalore.

H S Veerappa Gowda, fisheries director, said the modern fish auction centre would improve hygiene as it employs features such as air curtains to keep dust, insects and flies out and an efficient cleaning and drainage system and water jets for easy and effective cleaning.