Immediate Death Relief Assistance under the Welfare and Relief for Fishermen During Lean Seasons and Natural Calamities Scheme, Puducherry

What is Immediate Death Relief Assistance for fishermen in Puducherry?

Immediate Death Relief Assistance is a component of the Welfare and Relief for Fishermen during Lean Seasons and Natural Calamities Scheme, administered by the Department of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare, Government of Puducherry. The component pays a lump sum to the family of a registered fisherman who dies or goes missing while fishing in the sea.

The department states the objective of the parent scheme as rendering the welfare-oriented basic needs of the fishermen community and releasing "financial assistance to the families of missing fishermen / deceased fishermen while fishing". Fishing off the Coromandel coast is dangerous work: sudden squalls, engine failure far from shore, and collisions in shipping lanes all take lives each year, and the relief exists to put money into a household within days of a loss, before any insurance or legal process can conclude.

On the amount, two figures are on record and applicants should be clear about which applies:

• The department's own State Plan Scheme document lists immediate relief of Rs 1,00,000 to the families of missing or deceased fishermen.
• The Welfare and Relief for Fishermen during Lean Seasons and Natural Calamities Scheme, 2023, as recorded on the national myScheme portal, provides Rs 2,00,000 for accidental death of a fisherman and Rs 1,50,000 where a fisherman goes missing while fishing at sea.

The 2023 scheme has since been amended once, by G.O. Ms. No.12/FY dated 28 March 2025, but that amendment dealt only with ban and lean season relief and did not alter the death relief clause. Confirm the applicable figure with the Deputy Director of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare before filing, since a departmental web page may not always reflect the latest gazette notification.

The scheme runs in all four regions of the Union Territory — Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam.

Who is eligible for the fishermen death relief in Puducherry?

The family can claim relief if:

• The deceased was a registered fisherman of the Union Territory of Puducherry, holding a fisher identity card issued by the department.
• The deceased was resident in Puducherry by birth or domicile.
• The death or disappearance occurred while fishing in the sea, not on land and not while engaged in unrelated work.
• The deceased was a member of a fishermen co-operative society, which certifies the claim.
• The claimant is the spouse or the legal heir of the deceased.

The family is not eligible and cannot apply if:

• The deceased was not registered with the Department of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare.
• The death was not connected to fishing at sea, for example, illness at home, a road accident, or death during other employment. Such cases fall outside this component, though the funeral assistance of Rs 2,000 for deceased old-age pensioners under the same umbrella scheme may apply.
• The deceased was resident outside the Union Territory and fished in Puducherry waters only seasonally.
• No police or incident report exists connecting the death to fishing activity.
• A claim for the same death has already been sanctioned to another member of the family.

What documents are required?

How to apply for immediate death relief in Puducherry

1. Report the incident to the police immediately and obtain the First Information Report or incident report. Where the fisherman is missing at sea, report to the Coast Guard and marine police as well. This document is what connects the death to fishing and is the hardest to obtain later.
2. Inform your fishermen co-operative society, which will certify that the deceased was an active registered fisherman of that village and will forward the case to the department.
3. Collect the death certificate from the Registrar of Births and Deaths once the body is recovered and the death is registered. Where the fisherman remains missing, proceed with the police record instead.
4. Obtain the legal heir or family membership certificate from the Revenue Department, naming the claimant.
5. Fill in the claim form available at the Department of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare office, attaching the fisher identity card of the deceased, the society certificate, the police report, the heir certificate, and the claimant's Aadhaar and bank passbook copies.
6. Submit the claim to the Deputy Director of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare for the Puducherry region, the Deputy Director at Karaikal, or the Assistant Director at Mahe or Yanam.
7. Collect the acknowledgement and follow up with the file number until the relief is credited.

How much is paid and how?

The relief is a single lump-sum payment to the family. It does not run monthly and it does not renew.

Payment is made to the bank account of the claimant named in the heir certificate. Because the two published figures differ, ask the department to confirm the sanctioned amount in writing at the time of acknowledgement so that there is no dispute later.

This relief is separate from, and does not replace, any group insurance cover for fishermen or any ex-gratia announced by the government after a specific incident. A family may be entitled to more than one payment from different sources for the same death.

How do I check the status of a death relief claim?

1. Note the file number on the acknowledgement given by the department office.
2. Ask your co-operative society whether the case has been forwarded and certified, a claim stuck at the society stage never reaches the department.
3. Contact the Deputy Director of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare for your region with the file number.
4. If sanction has been accorded but no credit has appeared, check the bank account details recorded on the file.

Why death relief claims get delayed or rejected

• No police or incident report linking the death to fishing at sea. Without it the department cannot establish the cause.
• The deceased was never registered as a fisherman or the identity card had lapsed.
• Society membership not current, so no certificate is issued.
• Legal heir certificate not produced, or more than one relative claiming as heir. Disputes within a family stall the file until the Revenue Department settles the heirship.
• Death unconnected to fishing, which places the case outside this component.
• Bank account details wrong or account dormant, so the credit fails.
• Duplicate claim by a second relative for the same death.

Where do I complain if the relief is delayed?

• Director, Department of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare, Puducherry: +91-9442234784, email fish[dot]pon[at]nic[dot]in.
• Karaikal: the Deputy Director of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare, Beach Road, Karaikal.
• Mahe and Yanam: the Assistant Director of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare.
• CPGRAMS at pgportal.gov.in for a written grievance with a tracking number.

No fee is payable for a death relief claim, and no agent or society office-bearer is entitled to a share of the relief for forwarding a family's papers.