Distress Alert Transmitters (DAT) are being installed on trawlers so that fishermen can alert the authorities of any danger at sea. Till now about 1000 such DAT have been installed, another 1500 such will be installed soon. This information was provided by the Minister of Fisheries Chandranath Singh during Question Hour in the Assembly on Thursday.
He also added that as on April 30, 2015, 17516 fishermen have been handed bio-metric ID cards near the Sunderbans whereas a total of 1,48,971 bio-metric ID cards have been distributed all over the state.
The minister also announced that in case a fisherman dies due to an attack by pirates, the family of the diseased will be given Rs 2 lakh.
Chandranath Singh also said that 10,583 fishing nets have been e-registered already. He also mentioned that the fishermen are given Rs 600 per month when it is off season for fishing as financial assistance.
A pension scheme has also been started for fishermen. The minister admitted that there is an issue with the fishing permit issued by the forest department.