Kochi: The Union Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, George Kurian, on Friday launched the National Marine Fisheries Census (MFC) 2025, marking the beginning of a massive 45-day nationwide enumeration exercise aimed at collecting comprehensive digital data on India’s marine fishing sector.
The launch ceremony was held at the ICAR–Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) in Kochi. The enumeration, to be conducted from November 3 to December 18, will cover 1.2 million fisher households across 4,000 marine fishing villages in nine coastal states and four union territories.
Push for NFDP Registration
Addressing the gathering, Shri Kurian urged fisheries officers and enumerators to ensure that all fishermen and fish workers are registered on the National Fisheries Digital Platform (NFDP) — a prerequisite to avail benefits under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-Yojana (PM-MKSSY).
“Registration on the NFDP is mandatory for accessing financial assistance and welfare benefits from the Central government. The process is simple and can be completed through Common Service Centres (CSCs),” the Minister said.
First Fully Digital Census
Describing the 2025 Marine Fisheries Census as a milestone in India’s transition to data-driven fisheries governance, Shri Kurian said this edition represents “the first fully digitised data collection in the history of Indian fisheries.”
During the event, live field data collection from Maharashtra and Kerala was demonstrated, showcasing real-time digital data capture and central monitoring using two mobile applications—VyAS Bharat and VyAS Sutra—developed by CMFRI. The apps enable real-time data entry, geo-referencing, and verification, ensuring transparency, accuracy, and faster processing.
Nationwide Effort
The Census is being coordinated by the Department of Fisheries (DoF) under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), with CMFRI serving as the nodal agency and the Fishery Survey of India (FSI) as the operational partner. Thousands of trained field staff and enumerators will participate in the exercise.
Calling the initiative “Smart Census, Smarter Fisheries,” Shri Kurian urged state fisheries departments, local bodies, and fisher community organisations to extend full cooperation to make the project a success.
He also highlighted ongoing government measures for the welfare of marine fishers, including the installation of transponders and turtle excluder devices free of cost to improve safety and sustainability in fishing operations.
Officials Participate
The launch event was presided over by Dr. Ajay Srivastava, Economic Advisor to the Ministry of Fisheries. Union Fisheries Secretary Dr. Abhilaksh Likhi delivered a special address, while Joint Secretary Neetu Kumari Prasad, ICAR Assistant Director General Dr. Shubdeep Ghosh, CMFRI Director Dr. Grinson George, CIFT Director Dr. George Ninan, FSI Director General Dr. Sreenath K. R., and Marine Census Principal Investigator Dr. J. Jaysankar were among the key participants.
The event concluded with a national workshop featuring presentations from coastal states and interactions with representatives of fishing communities.
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