Exports to be raised to $4 bn by 2010

MARINE PRODUCTS: Employment potential to be increased to 4 million.

Export of marine products will be raised to $4 billion by 2010 from the present $1.6 billion, according to Jairam Ramesh, minister for state for commerce.

The government is also committed to increasing employment potential to 4 million. He said that 3.5 million additional employment opportunities would be generated in the next 5-6 years.

Ramesh said there should be a substantial increase in the value addition of marine exports as the contribution of value-added products in the marine sector is just 5 per cent, with the potential to be enhanced to 75 per cent within the next 5-6 years.

Of the total exports of $1.6 billion, around 60 per cent earnings comes from shrimp alone. Ramesh said the dependency on shrimp should be re-allocated as there is fierce competition in the marine products export front.

Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) will initiate plans to increase the export of tuna and scambi. Tuna has a good global market, which has been neglected by the marine export sector.

MPEDA has prepared plan to start aquaculture in Gujarat, Orissa and Maharashtra as this would be help produce more value-added products.

The minister has asked the chairman of MPEDA to prepare a working scheme to give concessions on diesel prices to the fishing sector.

He said that his ministry would discuss the issue with the ministries of agriculture, finance and petroleum and come up with a way to help the ailing fisheries sector.

The state governments of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are already supplying diesel at a subsidised rate to the fisheries, he added. "Other state governments including Kerala can follow this," he said.

He also said the government is of the view that import for fish for re-export purpose is inevitable and MPEDA had already recommended this in order to increase exports.

However, a large section of the fishing community is vehemently opposing import. He added that so far the government had not taken a decision on the issue and this needs a lot of deliberations since it is a sensitive issue in some states such as Kerala.

He also said that the commerce ministry had adopted a three line strategy on the issue of anti-dumping duty imposed by the US commerce department and will take all steps to withdraw the duty and bond system for import to the US.

Up 11per cent in FY06

Seafood export reached an all-time high of Rs 7,245.30 crore during 2005-06. The country exported 5,12,164 tonne of marine products during the year, up 11.02 per cent over the 4,61,329 tonne exported in 2004-05.

There had been 9.01 per cent increase in the value of exports in last financial year as the total export earnings in 2004-05 reached Rs 6,646.69 crore.

Frozen shrimp continued to be the major item of export accounting for 59 per cent of the total export value followed by frozen fish (14 per cent), cuttlefish (8 per cent) and squid (8 per cent).

According to estimates by the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) the European Union continued to be the major market for Indian seafoods with a 29 per cent share followed by the US with 23 per cent, Japan (16 per cent) and China (12 per cent).

Among the major ports from where seafood were exported, Chennai retained top spot with 19 per cent followed by Kochi (17 per cent) and Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Maharashtra (16 per cent).

In order to boost aquaculture activities, the MPEDA will be holding the third INDAQUA exhibition in Chennai between February 11 and 13 next year.

G Mohankumar, chairman, MPEDA, said the target for exports by 2015 is $6 billion and had identified three specific areas such as tuna exploitation, diversification of aquaculture species and promotion of value-added products for increareasing Indian exports.