Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-yojana (PM-MKSSY): Component 1B — One-Time Incentive for the Adoption of Aquaculture Insurance

What is PM-MKSSY Component 1B?

Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-yojana (PM-MKSSY) is a Central Sector sub-scheme of the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), run by the Department of Fisheries under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying. Approved by the Union Cabinet in 2024 with an outlay of over Rs 6,000 crore over four years, PM-MKSSY is aimed at formalising the fisheries sector and supporting its micro and small enterprises.

Component 1B is one specific benefit within that larger scheme. Component 1B is a one-time incentive for the adoption of aquaculture insurance. It reimburses part of the premium a farmer pays to insure an aquaculture crop, so that more fish and shrimp farmers protect themselves against the loss of a crop to disease, disaster or pollution.

According to the Press Information Bureau, the incentive is set at 40% of the premium paid, with a ceiling of Rs 25,000 per hectare of water spread area and a maximum of Rs 1 lakh per farmer for up to four hectares. Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and women beneficiaries receive an additional 10% of the payable incentive over the general rate.

What does the aquaculture insurance cover?

The insurance the incentive supports comes in two forms, as described by the Department of Fisheries:

• Basic Insurance; covers yield losses from natural and non-preventable perils such as summer kill, pollution, earthquakes, cyclones, floods and other natural calamities, riots, malicious acts of third parties including poisoning, and loss of crop from structural damage to the farm.
• Comprehensive Insurance, covers everything in Basic Insurance and, in addition, losses caused by disease.

The incentive under Component 1B applies to the premium paid for either type of policy, within the per-hectare and per-farmer caps.

Who is eligible for the PM-MKSSY aquaculture insurance incentive?

You can claim the Component 1B incentive if:

• You are an aquaculture or fish farmer operating a farm with a defined water spread area.
• You have purchased an eligible aquaculture insurance policy (basic or comprehensive) and paid the premium.
• You fall within the fisheries-sector micro and small enterprise group that PM-MKSSY is designed to support.

SC, ST and women beneficiaries are eligible for the same incentive plus an additional 10%.

You cannot claim it if:

• You have not taken an aquaculture insurance policy, the incentive is a reimbursement of a premium actually paid, so without a policy there is nothing to reimburse.
• Your claim exceeds the caps: the incentive stops at Rs 25,000 per hectare, at four hectares, and at Rs 1 lakh per farmer, whichever limit is reached first.
• The incentive has already been availed — it is a one-time benefit per eligible farmer.

What documents are required for Component 1B?

How to apply for the Component 1B incentive

1. Buy an eligible aquaculture insurance policy, basic or comprehensive, for your farm and keep the policy document and premium receipt.
2. Register on the National Fisheries Digital Platform set up under PM-MKSSY, or approach your State or UT Fisheries Department, which handles PM-MKSSY beneficiary registration.
3. Submit the incentive claim, uploading your insurance policy, premium receipt, proof of water spread area, Aadhaar and bank details.
4. State/UT verification. The Fisheries Department checks the claim against the eligibility rules and the caps.
5. On approval, the incentive is transferred by DBT to your bank account.

Because PM-MKSSY is delivered through the states, the exact registration steps and timelines can vary by state; the State Fisheries Department is the point of contact for the current process.

How much benefit does Component 1B provide?

The benefit is a one-time incentive equal to 40% of the aquaculture insurance premium, subject to:

• a ceiling of Rs 25,000 per hectare of water spread area;
• a maximum of four hectares per farmer; and
• an overall cap of Rs 1 lakh per farmer.

SC, ST and women beneficiaries receive an additional 10% of the payable incentive. The benefit is one-off, it is meant to nudge a farmer into adopting insurance for the first time, after which the farmer continues to pay the premium directly to the insurer for future policy periods.

Who runs it and where to get help

Component 1B sits within PM-MKSSY, run by the Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, and delivered on the ground by the State and Union Territory Fisheries Departments. Individual queries about registration, eligibility and claim status are best directed to the State Fisheries Department, with scheme-level information available from the Department of Fisheries. There is no fee to register a claim under the scheme.

How to check your application status

Component 1B claims are processed through the National Fisheries Digital Platform and verified by the State or UT Fisheries Department, so status checks run through the same two channels.

1. Check on the National Fisheries Digital Platform. Log in with the credentials you used to register your claim and open your application or beneficiary dashboard. The portal shows whether your claim is pending, under verification with the State Fisheries Department, approved, or paid out.
2. Follow up with the State or UT Fisheries Department. Because verification is done at the state level, the Fisheries Department office where you submitted your documents (or the district fisheries officer) can tell you exactly which stage your file is at, and what, if anything, is pending from your side.
3. Check your bank account for the DBT credit. Since the incentive is paid by direct benefit transfer, a straightforward way to confirm final approval is to watch for the credit in the bank account you registered, rather than relying only on a portal status label.
4. Keep your acknowledgement or reference number handy. Whether you registered online or through the State Fisheries Department, note the application or claim reference generated at submission; both the portal and the department will ask for it to pull up your case.

There is no separate SMS or call-centre tracking system published for Component 1B specifically; the platform login and the State Fisheries Department remain the two reliable ways to track a claim.

Common reasons for rejection

• No insurance policy on record, or an ineligible policy. Component 1B reimburses a premium already paid, so a claim without a valid basic or comprehensive aquaculture insurance policy and premium receipt cannot be processed. Fix: buy the policy first and keep the policy document and paid-premium receipt before filing the claim.
• Water spread area not verified or not documented. The incentive is calculated per hectare of water spread area, so if the farmer cannot produce records establishing the pond or farm area, the department cannot fix the payable amount. Fix: submit clear land or pond records (lease, ownership, or registration documents showing area) alongside the claim.
• Claim amount computed above the caps. Applications that ask for more than Rs 25,000 per hectare, cover more than four hectares, or exceed Rs 1 lakh per farmer in total get scaled down or sent back for correction. Fix: calculate the claim yourself against the caps before submitting, and only claim the incentive up to the applicable limit.
• Duplicate or repeat claim. Since this is a one-time incentive per farmer, a second claim from someone who has already received the Component 1B payout will be rejected outright. Fix: check with the State Fisheries Department on prior claim history before applying again, especially if farm ownership or registration has changed hands.
• Mismatch between Aadhaar, bank details and the insurance policy holder. If the name on the insurance policy, the Aadhaar card and the bank account do not match, the department cannot confirm the same person is the policyholder and the beneficiary. Fix: ensure the insurance policy is taken in the same name as the Aadhaar-linked bank account used for the claim.
• Missing proof for the additional 10% SC/ST/women incentive. Claims that ask for the extra 10% without attaching the caste certificate or relevant proof are processed only at the general rate, or returned for the missing document. Fix: attach the SC/ST certificate or applicable proof at the time of filing if claiming the higher rate, rather than after the base claim is approved.
• Enterprise falls outside the fisheries micro and small enterprise category the scheme targets. Component 1B is aimed at fisheries-sector micro and small enterprises; larger commercial operations outside this scope may not qualify. Fix: confirm your enterprise classification with the State Fisheries Department before applying.