India Casts Its Net Wide: The 5th Marine Fisheries Census Begins

NATIONAL
📅 April 30, 2025
Thematic Focus: Fisheries, Marine Economy, Digital Governance

🌊 Intro Whisper:
As waves return to shore, so must data return to the people. India’s marine heartbeats are now being counted—not by hand, but by code.

🪸 Key Highlights

🎣 The 5th Marine Fisheries Census (MFC)

• Covers 1.2 million households across 3,500 coastal villages
• Aims to document fishing families, vessels, infrastructure, and practices
• Last conducted in 2016, this edition shifts to digital-first methodology

📲 Digital Revolution: VyAS-NAV App

• Introduced for real-time village verification and enumeration
• Used by supervisors to record harbours, landing centres, and households
• Ensures accurate and dynamic field data

📉 Socio-Economic Insights

• Captures livelihoods, demographic details, and welfare scheme access
• Will assess policy impact and identify vulnerable households

🛟 Insurance Scheme for Aquafarmers

• Part of PM Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-Yojana (PM-MKSSY)
• Offers basic and comprehensive coverage for aquaculture operations
• Targets marginalised fishers to reduce post-disaster distress

🐢 Ecological Focus: Turtle Excluder Device (TED)

• Launched with census to reduce by-catch in shrimp trawling
• Aims to protect endangered turtles and promote sustainable fishing

📅 Timeline

• Village enumeration: May–June 2025
• Household-level enumeration: November–December 2025
• Enumerators drawn from the fishing community itself

🗺️ GS Paper Mapping

• GS Paper 3: Economy (Marine Economy, Fisheries Infrastructure)
• GS Paper 2: Governance (Digital Governance, Welfare Schemes)
• GS Paper 3: Environment (Conservation Tools, Sustainable Practices)

🧩 Keywords for Enrichment

VyAS-NAV App, Turtle Excluder Device (TED), Marine Census, Blue Economy, PM-MKSSY, Aquaculture Insurance, By-catch Reduction, Digital Enumeration, Fisher Community Welfare

A Thought Spark — by IAS Monk

“What we count, we begin to value. When the ocean speaks in numbers, it whispers not just of fish, but of futures.”