LINAC-NCDC Fisheries Business Incubation Centre to be launched
A first-of-its-kind, dedicated business incubator costing Rs 3.23 crore to nurture fisheries start-ups under real market-led conditions will be inaugurated by Parshottam Rupala, the Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, in Gurugram on November 16 in the presence of Dr L Murugan, the Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying.
New Delhi
A first-of-its-kind, dedicated business incubator costing Rs 3.23 crore to nurture fisheries start-ups under real market-led conditions will be inaugurated by Parshottam Rupala, the Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, in Gurugram on November 16 in the presence of Dr L Murugan, the Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying. This was stated in an NCDC press release.
The proposed LINAC-NCDC Fisheries Business Incubation Centre (LlFlC) aims to encourage entrepreneurial initiatives among entrepreneurs providing them handholding to move towards self-reliance.
The Laxmanrao Inamdar National Academy for Cooperative Research and Development (LINAC) is a training institution set up by the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC).
“More such Centres will be formed soon across the country as envisaged under the central flagship Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) launched last year with an aim to bring about Blue Revolution, as envisioned by our Prime Minister Narendra Modi through sustainable and responsible development of fisheries sector in India,” Rupala said.
Dr Murugan added that India was working to emerge as a prominent place on the world fisheries map by nurturing innovation, entrepreneurship and invention in the sector. "I am very pleased about the setting up of this incubation centre to accelerate the innovation and start-ups."
Sundeep Nayak, MD, NCDC said that “this unique initiative shall primarily focus on converting entrepreneurial ideas into business models and then support the launch of business operations. LIFIC shall also handhold the enterprises while negotiating a myriad of market dynamics with the aim of resulting in sustainable revenue generation and business operations in the sector.”
To begin with, the NCDC has identified the first batch of ten incubatees for LIFIC from four states. Out of them, six are from the newly created Fish Farmers Producer Organizations (FFPOs) with the support of the financial giant under PMMSY.
The incubatees are selected based on their keen entrepreneurial interest shown in fishery business. “In fact, the fisheries incubation centres (FICs) under the PMMSY allow for relevant incubation support to young professionals/entrepreneurs, cooperatives/federations, progressive fish farmers, fisheries-based industries and other entities … to showcase and commercialize their innovations and innovative ideas”, said Jatindra Swain, Union Fisheries Secretary.
“This laudable step can help in creating new businesses and employment opportunities in fisheries to boost the income of locals,” said Dr KR Salin, Director of NEDAC Bangkok, who has specially travelled to Delhi to attend the LIFIC inaugural.
One critical input, credit linkage, is assured to the successful incubatees who can avail financial assistance from NCDC.
The event will also be livestreamed on NCDC Sahakar CoopTube Channel and on NCDC Facebook Live, said an official from NCDC.
