Supply of Insulated Boxes

What is the Supply of Insulated Boxes scheme in Goa?

Supply of Insulated Boxes is a subsidy scheme of the Directorate of Fisheries, Government of Goa, that meets 75% of the cost of an insulated fish box of at least 50 litres capacity. The scheme covers three separate groups, retail fish sellers, fishermen working the sea in a canoe, and owners of mechanised fishing vessels with engines up to 6 cylinders.

The reason the state funds boxes rather than ice is simple. Fish landed in Goa often moves through several hands before it reaches a plate, and in the coastal heat the quality loss between the jetty and the market bench is where most of the value disappears. An insulated box holds ice long enough to keep the catch in a hygienic condition through that journey, and it costs a fraction of a cold chain.

According to the Government of Goa scheme description, applications are accepted in offline mode only.

How much is the insulated box subsidy in Goa?

The subsidy is 75% of cost in every category. Only the ceiling and the box sizes change:

The ceiling is the absolute limit. A canoe fisherman whose two boxes cost Rs 12,000 receives Rs 7,000, not 75% of Rs 12,000, because 75% would be Rs 9,000 and that exceeds the cap.

Who is eligible for the Goa insulated box scheme?

You can claim the subsidy if you are one of the following:

• A fisherman engaged in selling and marketing fish. The retail fish seller category, which covers the women who sell at market benches and roadside stands across Goa.
• A fisherman engaged in fishing at sea with a canoe.
• A fisherman engaged in fishing at sea with a mechanised fishing vessel with up to 6-cylinder engines.

You are not eligible if:

• You operate a mechanised fishing vessel with an engine larger than 6 cylinders. The scheme stops at that engine size.
• You cannot produce either a Vessel Registration Certificate (for the vessel and canoe categories) or a Panchayat or Municipality certificate of active fish retailing (for the 50-litre category).
• Your fishing licence or net licence book has lapsed, in the categories where those are required.
• You are buying a container below 50 litres capacity.

Note that the three categories are alternatives, not a ladder. A person applies in the one category that matches how they actually work.

What documents are required?

The document set depends on which box you are claiming.

For 400-litre and 220-litre boxes for fishing vessels:

• Copy of the Vessel Registration Certificate of the fishing vessel
• Latest copy of the updated Fishing Licence or Certificate
• Latest copy of the updated Net Licence Book
• Copy of the Aadhaar card

For 100-litre and 220-litre boxes for fishing canoes:

• Copy of the Vessel Registration Certificate of the fishing vessel
• Latest copy of the updated Fishing Licence or Certificate
• Latest copy of the updated Net Licence Book
• Copy of the Aadhaar card

For 50-litre boxes for active fish sellers:

• Certificate from the Village Panchayat or Municipality indicating that the applicant is actively engaged in the retail sale of fish
• Copy of the Aadhaar card

The Panchayat or Municipality certificate is the crucial document for the seller's category. Get it on the body's letterhead, dated, and worded to say that you are actively engaged in retail sale of fish, not merely resident in the ward.

How to apply for the insulated box subsidy in Goa

1. Take a print of the prescribed application form for the Supply of Insulated Boxes scheme.
2. Fill in all mandatory fields, paste a passport-sized photograph signed across if the form requires it, and sign the declaration.
3. Attach self-attested copies of the documents for your category: vessel papers and licences for the canoe and vessel categories, or the Panchayat or Municipality certificate for the fish seller category — together with your Aadhaar card and the purchase bill for the box.
4. Submit the duly filled and signed form with the documents to the concerned authority at the Department of Fisheries, Dayanand Bandodkar Marg, Patto Colony, Panaji, Goa 403 521, or to the Fisheries official posted at a BDO office or a sub-office of the Department of Fisheries.
5. Collect the acknowledgement carrying the inward number and date.

How do I check the status of my claim?

There is no online tracker published for this scheme. Status is checked by visiting or telephoning the office where the file was inwarded and quoting the inward number. The Fisheries Superintendent or Fisheries Officer covering your taluka can confirm whether the physical verification of the box has been done and whether the file has gone forward for sanction.

The subsidy is credited to the applicant's bank account. If the sanction is on record but the money has not arrived, the problem is nearly always in the account details rather than in the sanction.

Why do insulated box claims fail?

• Box smaller than the prescribed capacity for the category claimed. A 180-litre box does not satisfy a 220-litre entitlement.
• Panchayat certificate that does not say "actively engaged in retail sale of fish". A generic residence certificate is not accepted for the 50-litre category.
• Lapsed net licence book in the canoe and vessel categories.
• Engine above 6 cylinders, which puts the vessel outside the scheme.
• No purchase bill, or a bill from an unregistered seller.
• A repeat claim where the departmental record already shows a box supplied to the same beneficiary.

Where do I complain about a delay?

The Directorate of Fisheries publishes a grievance route in its citizen charter. Any dissatisfaction with the service or its standards can be registered with the Department's Grievance Redressal Officer, and grievances may also be lodged by email at dir-fish.goa@nic.in. The charter commits to acknowledging every complaint and communicating the final action taken within 30 days.

If the departmental reply does not resolve matters, the Government of Goa's public grievance facility at goaonline.gov.in allows a grievance to be registered against the department and tracked by reference number.

Practical advice

• Buy a box that matches the notified capacity exactly. The entitlement is written in litres, and inspection is done against the manufacturer's marking on the box.
• Insist on a proper invoice with the capacity printed on it. This is what the 75% is calculated against.
• Fish sellers should apply through their Panchayat or Municipality office first, obtaining the activity certificate usually takes longer than the Fisheries formalities.
• Keep the box's warranty papers. Insulated boxes in constant use with ice have a finite service life, and the departmental record of a supply under this scheme affects when you can claim again.
• The insulated box subsidy is separate from the Goa scheme of financial assistance to registered fish vendors for crates, weighing balances, gloves and other vending accessories. A vendor may find the accessories scheme a better fit if the box is only one of several items needed.