Conversion/Modernisation of Mechanised Fishing Boats for Deep Sea Fishing under Financial Assistance for Availing Subsidy Components for the Development of Marine Fisheries

What is the deep sea conversion subsidy in Puducherry?

Conversion/Modernisation of Mechanised Fishing Boats for Deep Sea Fishing is a capital subsidy of the Department of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare, Government of Puducherry. It is a sub-component of the Union Territory's umbrella scheme, Financial Assistance for Availing Subsidy Components for the Development of Marine Fisheries.

The problem it addresses is the limits of inshore fishing. A conventional mechanised boat working close to the Puducherry coast competes for a shrinking inshore catch. Extending the hull, fitting mechanical hauling gear and adding navigation and cold-storage equipment lets the same owner work further offshore, stay out longer and land a better-value catch. The scheme pays half the conversion cost so that owners with existing boats can make that transition without buying a new vessel outright.

Unlike the new-vessel subsidy, this component is aimed squarely at owners who already have a working registered boat and want to upgrade it. The prescriptive equipment list in the eligibility conditions is what distinguishes a genuine deep-sea conversion from ordinary repairs.

How much subsidy does the deep sea conversion scheme pay?

The pattern of assistance is:

• 50% subsidy
• subject to a maximum of Rs 2,50,000 per boat
• linked to bank finance

The Department notes that the rate of subsidy and the maximum limit may be revised by the Government from time to time, so applicants should confirm the current figure with the Deputy Director (Mechanisation) before signing a contract with a boatyard.

Because the subsidy is linked to bank finance, it is normally released against the loan account rather than paid directly to the owner in cash. The owner takes a loan for the full conversion cost, the yard is paid from the loan, and the government subsidy reduces the outstanding principal once the work is verified.

What work must be done to qualify?

The eligibility conditions describe the conversion in physical terms. The hull should be extended above 47 feet of overall length, and the boat should be procured and fitted with:

• a new hydraulic winch
• steel ropes
• a global positioning system
• an echo sounder
• an inbuilt insulated ice-box
• life-saving appliances

The list is not decorative. A hydraulic winch and steel ropes allow gear to be worked at depth; the GPS and echo sounder allow a skipper to find and return to productive ground offshore; the insulated ice-box preserves the catch over a longer trip; and the life-saving appliances are the condition on which the Department is prepared to encourage boats further from shore at all.

The hull length requirement is absolute. There is no provision for a shorter hull, and a boat that cannot be extended above 47 feet overall length is not eligible under this component.

Who is eligible for the conversion subsidy?

You can apply if:

• You belong to the fishermen community, or are professionally engaged in fishing or the fish trade full-time, or are a prospective entrepreneur in fishing.
• You have resided in the Union Territory of Puducherry for not less than five continuous years at the time of applying.
• You are enrolled as a member of a Fishermen Co-operative Society.
• You are above 23 and below 60 years of age.
• Your mechanised boat is registered with the Department of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare, Puducherry.
• The hull will be extended above 47 feet and fitted with the equipment listed above.
• You hold a provisional loan sanction order from a bank.

You cannot apply if:

• You are a recipient of the Old Age Pension issued by the Department.
• You are employed in Government, a Government undertaking or a Fishermen Co-operative Society, on any basis.
• You have dues outstanding to the Department or any Fishermen Co-operative Society on the date of application.
• Your boat is unregistered, or the proposed hull length is 47 feet or below.
• You have no provisional bank loan sanction. Self-financed conversions are not eligible under this component as written.
• You are 60 or above, or under 23, or resident in Puducherry for less than five continuous years.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the deep sea conversion subsidy

1. Get a provisional loan sanction. Approach your bank with the conversion estimate and obtain a provisional sanction order, because it is both an eligibility condition and a mandatory enclosure.
2. Prepare the hull specifications. Have the boatyard set out in writing the proposed overall length after extension, and the winch, ropes, GPS, echo sounder, insulated ice-box and life-saving appliances to be fitted.
3. Visit the Department office at the Fishing Harbour Complex, Thengaithittu, Mudaliarpet Post, Puducherry 605 004, or the regional sub-office for Karaikal, Mahe or Yanam, and request the prescribed subsidies application form in hard copy.
4. Complete the form, paste the passport-sized photograph and sign across it where required, and attach self-attested copies of every mandatory document, including the boat registration proof, hull specifications and the provisional loan sanction.
5. Submit the form and enclosures to the concerned authority and collect a dated acknowledgement carrying the date and time of submission and a unique identification number.
6. Cooperate with the field inquiry, which is conducted by an officer not below the rank of Sub-Inspector of Fisheries before the file goes to the Selection Committee.

How is the application verified and selected?

Verification runs in two stages. An officer not below the rank of Sub-Inspector of Fisheries conducts a field inquiry into the genuineness of the application, inspecting the boat and the proposed work. The scheme implementing officer, usually an Assistant Director or Deputy Director of Fisheries, then records the verification and the recommendation.

The file then goes to the Departmental Selection Committee, headed by the Director of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare, which selects beneficiaries from the shortlisted applicants. Eligible beneficiaries are shortlisted within 60 days from the commencement of field inquiry work.

How do I check the status of my application?

Follow up with the unique identification number from your acknowledgement at the office where you filed. Each office maintains an application receipt register that records the stage of the file. Where the application was submitted through the Puducherry e-District portal at edistrict.py.gov.in, the portal's Track Application page can be used with the number issued there.

Why applications get rejected, and how to fix them

• Hull length at or below 47 feet. This criterion is absolute and applications failing it are rejected outright.
• No provisional loan sanction order. Arrange the finance before you file, not after.
• Boat not registered, or the registration number not traceable in departmental records.
• Equipment list incomplete. Omitting the hydraulic winch, GPS, echo sounder, insulated ice-box or life-saving appliances from the specification defeats the purpose of the component.
• Dues outstanding with the Department or the co-operative society.
• Age or residence outside the limits, most often a residence certificate that covers less than five continuous years.
• Applicant in government or society employment, which the declaration and field inquiry both test.

The Department does not publish a reconsideration mechanism once the Selection Committee has finished shortlisting, so it is worth having the boatyard specification and the bank sanction in place before the first submission.

Where to raise a grievance

Contact the Directorate of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare, Fishing Harbour Complex, Thengaithittu, Mudaliarpet Post, Puducherry 605 004, telephone 0413-2357761, email fish[dot]pon[at]nic[dot]in. Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam applicants should first approach their regional sub-office, listed on the Sub-Offices page of fisheries.py.gov.in.

The Department also publishes emergency numbers for sea safety: Indian Coast Guard 1554, Coastal Police Station 1093 and State Emergency Operation Centre 1077. No fee is charged for the application form or for registration under this subsidy.