FRP Hatchery Scheme (Establishment of Fabricated Reinforced Plastic Hatcheries), Meghalaya

What is the FRP Hatchery Scheme in Meghalaya?

The FRP Hatchery Scheme funds the establishment of Fabricated Reinforced Plastic hatcheries in the private sector in Meghalaya. It is run by the Meghalaya State Fish Farmer Development Agency under the Directorate of Fisheries, and it sits inside Mini Mission II: Critical Infrastructure Development of the Meghalaya State Aquaculture Mission.

The problem the scheme addresses is a shortage of fish seed. As the departmental note puts it, quality fish seed is the basic requirement for inland fish farming, and with the Aquaculture Mission expanding pond area across the state the demand for seed rises sharply. Rather than build only departmental hatcheries, the state chose to put small, portable hatchery units into private hands.

The FRP hatchery design comes from CIFA, Bhubaneswar, the Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture. Each unit consists of a breeding or spawning pool, a hatching or incubation pool, an egg and spawn collection chamber, and an overhead storage tank with water supply system. The breeding pool is 2.15 metres in diameter and 0.9 metres high with a 3,400 litre capacity; the hatching pool is 1.4 metres in diameter and 1.0 metre high with a 1,433 litre capacity; the egg collection tank holds 250 litres.

The Meghalaya state portal records the current funding pattern for the scheme as 54 percent central share, 6 percent state share and 40 percent beneficiary share, with the entry dated from 1 January 2018.

Why an FRP unit rather than a masonry hatchery

• Affordable capital cost compared with a permanent concrete hatchery.
• The unit is light, transportable by a trolley auto, and can be shifted from place to place.
• Only about 8 square metres of space is needed for installation.
• Easy to install, dismantle, operate and repair.
• In the lean season the same system can be used for ornamental fish rearing, common carp breeding or simply water storage.
• It cuts the cost and mortality of hauling fish seed in from distant states.

Who is eligible for the FRP Hatchery Scheme?

You can apply if:

• You are from the State of Meghalaya and fall into one of the eligible categories, a progressive fish farmer, a self-help group, a fish farmer cooperative society, or an entrepreneur.
• You have a minimum farm area of 1 hectare, which must include nursery ponds, rearing ponds, stocking tanks, brood-stock tanks, a godown and space to install the FRP hatchery.
• You have the financial capacity to bear 15 percent of the actual FRP cost, plus the additional expenditure of creating the nursery, rearing and stocking tanks.
• You can meet the cost of delivering the consignment from Shillong or Tura to your own farm.
• You are aged 18 to 60 years, the range recorded on the state portal entry.

The scheme norms state that in selecting entrepreneurs, preference is given to progressive fish farmers, educated unemployed youth, established self-help groups, fish farmer cooperative societies and entrepreneurs who have the capacity to bear their 15 percent share.

You cannot apply if:

• Your farm area is below 1 hectare. This is a hard floor, and the hectare is measured as the working farm complex, not bare land.
• You cannot fund the 15 percent own contribution and the supporting pond infrastructure. District officers assess financial capacity explicitly during scrutiny.
• You are outside Meghalaya.
• You want a pond alone without hatchery infrastructure — that is a different component, and such applicants are not eligible here.

Fish farmer cooperative societies must route their applications through the Assistant Registrar of Co-operative Societies of their district rather than applying directly.

How much does an FRP hatchery cost and who pays what?

The scheme is implemented on the CIFA Bhubaneswar unit cost including locally procured components, worked out at Rs 1,58,025, rounded to Rs 1,58,000 per hatchery.

The Rs 1,58,000 covers one FRP unit procured from CIFA Bhubaneswar, one 8 H.P. pump set and one overhead tank, the latter two arranged locally by the Department. Transport from CIFA Bhubaneswar to Shillong or Tura is borne by the Department. Carriage from Shillong or Tura to the beneficiary's site, and the installation cost of the FRP, are borne by the beneficiary.

The loan is a medium-term loan repayable over 5 years including a 1 year gestation period, so the principal is cleared in 4 equal yearly instalments, with interest as per the sanctioning bank's norms.

How to apply for the FRP Hatchery Scheme

1. Watch for the public notice. The Department gives wide publicity in local print and electronic media when a round of FRP hatchery applications opens.
2. Collect the application form from the office of the Superintendent of Fisheries-cum-District Executive Officer or the Sub-Divisional Fishery Officer-cum-Sub-Divisional Executive Officer on any working day.
3. Fill in the form with your name, address, phone, fax and email; your educational qualification and experience; your category; the district, C&RD Block, village and police station of the site; total land area and total water area with existing nursery, rearing and brood-stock pond numbers; whether the farm is flood prone; the water source, whether perennial or seasonal; the energy source; and details of past bank loans.
4. Enclose the documents: identity proof, land ownership documents, farm layout, copy of commercial registration if any, water source permission if the farm depends on an external resource, and the No Objection Certificate from the local Headman, Nokma or Sirdar.
5. Submit the form to the District Executive Officer, or through the Assistant Registrar of Co-operative Societies if you are a fish farmer cooperative society, before the date given in the notice.
6. Allow the site survey. Technical staff or Programme Managers of the FFDA carry out a preliminary survey and report on feasibility to the District Executive Officer, who then organises a joint inspection with MCAB or other bank officials.
7. Deposit the 15 percent own contribution with MCAB once your name is on the approved list. MCAB then sanctions the 25 percent loan, and the CEO of the FFDA releases the 60 percent subsidy to MCAB.

What happens after selection?

The sequence set out in the scheme's process chart is precise:

1. The District Aquaculture Mission Committee, chaired by the Deputy Commissioner, scrutinises, selects and recommends applications.
2. The CEO of the FFDA accords final approval and sends the priority list back to the District Executive Officers.
3. The beneficiary deposits 15 percent with MCAB; MCAB sanctions the loan; FFDA releases the subsidy.
4. District Executive Officers indent the required number of FRP units from CIFA Bhubaneswar, and CIFA may be called in to assist with installation.
5. On delivery the DEO or SDEO checks and verifies the goods before advising MCAB to release the full cost of the FRP to CIFA.
6. The beneficiary is sent for training at CIFA Bhubaneswar or another recognised fishery institution.
7. After installation the DEO or SDEO ensures fish seed production starts immediately. Brood stock, fish feed and other inputs are procured by the entrepreneur under departmental guidance.
8. Monthly progress reports flow from the DEOs to the CEO of the FFDA in Shillong until the project is complete.

Why applications get rejected

• Farm area under 1 hectare, or an area that does not actually contain the required pond and tank infrastructure.
• Missing headman's NOC, an enclosure the form lists explicitly.
• Weak financial capacity to fund the 15 percent share and the supporting ponds; assessed at district scrutiny stage.
• Site judged non-feasible in the technical survey, commonly for an unreliable water source or a flood-prone location.
• Cooperative society applying directly instead of through the Assistant Registrar of Co-operative Societies.
• Unresolved outstanding bank loans disclosed on the form, which can stop the joint bank inspection stage.

Grievance and help

• Superintendent of Fisheries-cum-District Executive Officer in your district for form, scrutiny and survey questions.
• Director of Fisheries-cum-Chief Executive Officer, Fish Farmer Development Agency, Meghalaya, Shillong, who signs the scheme notices and approves the final beneficiary list.
• Deputy Commissioner of your district as Chairman of the District Aquaculture Mission Committee for selection grievances.
• stateportal-meg[at]gov[dot]in for queries about the scheme entry on meghalaya.gov.in.

Application forms, scheme norms, the process chart and the concept note on carp hatchery design are issued free of cost. No agent can charge you to be added to the beneficiary list.