The Centre has assured West Bengal of all assistance to help the state emerge as the country's top fish-producing state, with Union Fisheries Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh handing over a sanction letter for Rs 9 crore for developing six Amrit Sarovar projects in two drought-prone districts.
Singh gave the assurance after co-chairing a review meeting on the development of fisheries and aquaculture in West Bengal with Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari at the Department of Animal Resources Development in New Town near the city.
The meeting, which lasted around one-and-a-half hours, discussed the development of fisheries and related businesses across the state, including coastal, saline and brackish-water areas as well as the hilly regions.
"We have assured of all assistance to the state," Singh said at a joint press conference with Adhikari after the meeting.
Focus on expanding fisheries across regions
He said West Bengal, currently the second-largest fish-producing state in the country, has immense potential to improve production and reach the top position.
Singh expressed confidence that the work undertaken by the BJP government in the state since its formation four months ago would help West Bengal move to the top in fish production.
He also highlighted the Sundarbans' potential to emerge as a hub for black tiger shrimp and mud crab production.
Adhikari said the state had now been brought under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), which would provide fishermen access to various benefits, including credit.
"West Bengal has tremendous potential in the fisheries sector. We have discussed this repeatedly. I would especially thank Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh. After hearing all our concerns, he has handed over Rs 9 crore for development of the fisheries sector in West Bengal," Adhikari said.
He alleged that the state could have availed the benefits of the scheme earlier, but the previous TMC government did not do so for political consideration.
"In the four months of our government, we have provided the people of the state with the benefits of central schemes to the extent possible," Adhikari said.
Coastal and dry districts face different challenges
The Chief Minister said West Bengal's long coastline, rivers and vast water resources offered considerable scope for expanding fisheries and related businesses.
"West Bengal has a golden opportunity for development of fisheries business and production. We discussed the development of fishing and fisheries business from saline water to brackish water and in the hills," he said.
Referring to the differences in fisheries potential across regions, Adhikari said fishermen in the coastal areas of south Bengal had relatively fewer difficulties because of the availability of the sea and rivers, while fish farming posed greater challenges in the dry districts of Bankura and Purulia.
"These districts face problems in fish farming. On our proposal, the Union minister has approved a total of six Amrit Sarovars in these districts," he said.
Amrit Sarovar project is a water conservation scheme launched by the Central government in 2022 to develop and rejuvenate 75 water bodies in each district across the country.
Centre flags hurdles under previous administration
Singh, while praising the new state government, also criticised the previous administration, claiming that efforts to extend benefits to West Bengal had faced hurdles earlier.
"In the past few years, we wanted to provide benefits here but could not do so because the state government officials did not cooperate. A work which had been pending for five years has been completed in four months," he said.
Singh also said that India had exported 500 tonnes of hilsa to Bangladesh this year, describing it as a reversal in the usual direction of the trade.
The review meeting was attended by Singh and Adhikari, besides Chief Secretary Manoj Agrawal and Minister of State for Fisheries Rajesh Mahato.
West Bengal recorded 25.43 lakh tonnes of fish production in 2025-26 and remains the country's second-largest fish-producing state, according to government data.