BHUBANESWAR: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday virtually laid the foundation stone for eastern India’s largest fish market at Pandara in Bhubaneswar and an integrated aqua park (IAP) at Hirakud in Sambalpur.
While the state-of-the-art wholesale fish market will come up on an area of five acre at a cost of Rs 59.13 crore, the IAP will be set up at an estimated cost of Rs 100 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) and Fisheries Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF). Both the projects will generate employment for over 4,000 people.
The two projects are among the seven new projects worth Rs 572 crore for which the foundation stones were laid in six states during the launch of Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana (PMDDKY) and National Pulses Self-Reliance Mission on the day.
Speaking on the occasion, the prime minister underlined that sectors like animal husbandry, fisheries and beekeeping are being actively promoted to provide additional income sources, particularly for small and landless farmers. “These projects have the potential to strengthen infrastructure, create employment, boost exports and usher in a new era for India’s blue economy,” Modi said.
Attending the event on virtual medium, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi said agriculture and allied activities are the main livelihood for a majority of the population in the country. More than 60 per cent of Odisha and half of the country’s population earn their living through agriculture, he added.
“The two projects - IAP and wholesale fish market gifted by the prime minister will create a value chain from initial production to processing and marketing. It will help Odisha take a leading position in India’s blue revolution and make the state an aquaculture hub in eastern India,” Majhi said.
He thanked the prime minister for selecting four districts of Odisha - Kandhamal, Malkangiri, Sundargarh and Nuapada - under the PMDDKY programme. “I am confident that this scheme will make farmer families prosperous and their income will definitely increase,” he added.
The proposed fish market at Pandara on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar will provide space for 44 wholesalers and 99 retailers. It will cater to the Twin City and supply quality fish, providing a scope of market expansion for fishers/farmers. An MoU has been signed with BMC to implement the project, which will be completed by November 2027.
Similarly, the IAP will support 1,600 cage farmers, production and processing of fish varieties Tilapia and Pangasius and hatchery for seed production of freshwater species. The project will come up on an area of 95.47 acre and transform Sambalpur into a centre of excellence in modern fish farming. It is slated to be ready by January 2027.
Deputy chief minister KV Singh Deo, Law minister Prithiviraj Harichandan and senior officials were present.
